Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry
by Alexandal137
Summary: When Harry is young he dreams of a world of magic unlike anything that exists. Hints of themes from the Circle of Magic series by Tamora Pierce. Pairings undecided, most likely HufflePuff!Harry, UniqueMagic!Harry
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

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 **A/n: I do not own Harry Potter or the Circle of Magic. Stories are owned by J. and Tamora Pierce respectively. Also unsure about whether or not I'll continue Juggernaut's resolve so don't hold your breath. If anyone wants to adopt it then go ahead I don't mind.**

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Chapter 1

When Harry Potter, newly turned 5 year old, saw one of Mrs Figg's cats play with a ball of wool during one of the times he was staying with her while the Dursley's went on holiday without him, he had the strangest fascination with wool and all sorts of fabrics.

Two weeks later and the Dursleys return saw the fascination turn into obsession for reasons that no one knew, even himself. All he felt was the sound of something shuffling back and forth and the clack of needles. Even knowing that he would get into trouble for asking, he asked, nay he pleaded with the Dursleys to buy him some wool and knitting needles.

It took the promise of him staying in his cupboard willingly as long as they wished that caused the Dursleys to cave in to his request, the joy of having the brat out of the prying eyes of the neighbors proving to be too good to be true. Petunia especially took to the decision with gusto, hustling off to buy said materials as well as a how-to book for knitting.

The moment she returned Harry was jumping up from the stairs where he had been sitting, eagerly waiting for her return and felt the call even stronger as he could practically hear the call of the wool from inside the bag.

Harry looked at Petunia with pleading eyes but waited until she handed him the bag knowing that doing so would result in punishment and the threat of having to wait to play with the wool was too much of a threat to risk.

When he received the bag he did something that shocked the both of them and wrapped her in a tight hug before racing back to his cupboard to eagerly begin reading the book even though he was only starting to learn how to read. He figured the pictures would be enough to get started and he simply could not wait anymore.

The moment he pulled the wool out, something inside of him sang in harmony with the texture of the wool. Rough and warbled, but also calm and comforting tones swept through his body and had his heart beating faster in excitement. Harry reveled in the feeling of warmth and was lost to the rest of the world as he sat down on his small mattress.

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Over the next 3 months Harry began to start dreaming of a world different to the one that he knew but felt as if it was as natural as when he was awake. He dreamed of a large temple set out in a spiral inside a crater. He dreamed of looms and sunlight. Of a teacher calm and patient. Of children from all walks of life and the day to day monotony of taking care of a cottage, and learning new languages and relaxing on the roof.

The dreams helped him deal with the trivialities and difficulties that he encountered at school. The way Dudley and his friends picked on him for his fascination and skill at knitting and weaving. The other children making fun of him since Dudley did and no one wanted to get on the bad side of Dudley. The way the teachers simply stood back and watched him be bullied on the playground about being girly.

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Harry was 8 when the dreams that had become increasingly spaced apart as the children in his dreams grew older began anew. It was the night of his birthday when he felt like he was trapped underneath the clock tower of the temple. Three months later he dreamed of pirates and the redhead calling forth a tornado to destroy a fleet of ships. 6 months after that came visions of a forest fire and a black girl standing against it with her back straight facing the inferno. It was on his 10th birthday where he was plagued by nightmares caused by an epidemic that was sweeping through the city.

He had no idea what these dreams meant if they meant anything at all but he kept these dreams close to his chest as he figured that if the Dursleys knew he was having weird dreams then the punishments would begin again. Ever since the day he received the wool he stopped getting upset as if the wool was dragging away all the negative emotions which in turn cut down on the weird things that usually happened that caused him to be locked away.

Harry would often wish he could do something like the blond girl in his dreams could do as he watched her spin her wool without touching the spindle. Of how she slowly grew into her talents and learned to weave healing and protection into everyday clothing.

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It was a cold windy day and it looked like it would rain at any moment as Harry slowly walked to school dreaming about when he could go back to his cupboard and try a new pattern he had been thinking about trying. True to his word he hadn't complained as he did his chores over the years as long as he received new wool and fabrics every few months. He snapped back into reality as a particularly biting gust of wind swept down the street.

He glared at the large, baggy hand-me-downs that he had to wear and wished that it was warm, tight and form-fitting. To his astonishment and absolute delight, he watched as the threads began to move as the weave slowly tightened with the excess fabric slowly pooled into his hands. As the threads began to move Harry also felt something inside of him moving, as if the soothing rustle of silk and cotton that he heard inside of himself began to travel up and down his arms before pooling at the tips of his fingers.

He tentatively wished for the fabric in his hands to cut off from the rest of the shirt and he hastily tucked it into his pocket when it obliged and spent the day in blissful oblivion, answering questions when asked and simply basking in the feel of the cotton between his fingers and daydreaming about the things he could do based on what he saw in his dreams.

When Harry got home that day he rushed back to his cupboard and locked the door hoping that whatever happened that day was not a fluke. He looked up at all the charms that he had made over the years hanging off the bottom of the stairs and focused on a charm that was weaved out of a sunshine yellow wool and wished as hard as he could for it to glow.

What followed was a huge flash of light that would have blinded Harry had he not had his eyes scrunched in concentration that all children were prone to do. Even with his eyes closed he still had to blink spots out of his eyes, thankful that no one was home with Petunia and Dudley at the shops while his uncle was still at work.

His smile widened at he looked at the charm that was giving off a steady if not too bright glow. With a mental wish he dimmed the charm until it looked as if he merely had the light on.

'I have magic!' Harry thought ecstatically, not knowing that he already had magic and that it simply responded to the way he thought magic worked based on his dreams. 'I wonder if I can do what Sandry does from my dreams. This is going take a lot of experimenting to see what I can do.'

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Harry spent the next few weeks trying to figure out how to replicate the lessons that he saw Lark teaching Sandry. He learnt how to fortify his clothing with the runes that he learnt from his dreams so that when Dudley and his friends decided that it was a Harry-Hunting day he merely received bruises rather than the cracked bones that he used to receive. He taught himself how to infuse his magic into the clothing he wore to increase the speed in which his bruises healed and how to spread out his magic like a spider web so that he always knew when someone was approaching.

As Harry spent his 10th year of living learning how to manipulate the fabrics he owned with his magic he began to look at the recent styles found in catalogs in the public library. He frequented the library quite a lot when he didn't feel like going home immediately, usually during the days where he hadn't had a dream the night before.

Thanks to his constant perusal of the catalogs he began shaping the clothing that the Dursleys shoved off to him into the latest comfortable and fashionable items that drove the Dursleys mad trying to figure out where he was getting them since they looked nothing like the clothes he was given. He kept them in the bad quality that they were but used his creativity to alter them so that they looked good despite the age of the cloth.

It was Dudley's 11th birthday when Harry's life took an entirely different path from the one he expected. He had been planning on going to Stonewall High and take a focus on Textiles and make an eventual career as a fashion designer when they went to the zoo and spent an amusing and exciting day wandering around following at a not so noticeable distance to avoid any mishaps with his relatives.

They had just reached the reptile house and Dudley and his friend that coincidentally also bullied Harry had just walked away from a Boa constrictor that refused to move despite their insistent knocking on the glass.

"Sorry about them. They don't really think about other people. At least you have glass separating you from everyone else." Harry whispered to the snake.

The snake lazily opened one eye and stared straight at Harry.

" _It's alright. It happens more than you think_ " the snake hissed back.

Harry was beyond shocked and simply stared at the snake that had begun to move about.

"You can talk? I suppose there would be more than one type of magic after all. I wouldn't be surprised" Harry mused as he contemplated the differences between the two different types of magic he's encountered.

The snake merely looked amused as it stared at the human lost in thought before turning to stare at the rapidly approaching oafs that disrupted its nap earlier.

"DUDLEY! MR DURSLEY! COME QUICK THE SNAKE IS MOVING!" shouted Piers as he rushed toward where Harry was standing, with Dudley following closely.

"Move you" Dudley snarled as he punched Harry in the ribs causing him to topple over and glare at Dudley as he lay on the floor. It was due to his surprise and the fact that he was cursing himself for letting down his web that he felt a surge of his magic escape from him.

He blinked in shock as he watched the glass vanish and Dudley topple into the enclosure as the snake made its way onto the floor and heading for the exit.

" _Thank you friend. May we meet again someday_ " the snake hissed as it made its way past Harry

"Anytime…." was all Harry could manage as he watched the snake make its getaway, stupefied that that had happened.

After a large mug of tea was drunk by Petunia given by the hysterical zoo keeper who kept babbling about where the glass went the five of them made their way back to the car and back to Privet Drive.

Harry kept silent as he listened to the more and more outrageous stories that Dudley and Piers kept repeating, knowing the truth of what happened and that attempted strangulation and dodging poisonous bites definitely did not happen.

"Harry was talking to the snake before it escaped weren't you." Piers accused Harry, bringing him back to the present and away from the possibilities that he wasn't the only magical person around.

"Of course I didn't. That would have to be some kind of magic to do that." Harry snarked back. He was still pretty upset about the punch to his ribs that received, thankful that he had stitched healing and protection runes on to the inside of his shirt.

What he didn't expect was for Vernon to jerk the car to a stop and turn around and snarl at him.

"There's no such thing as magic."

It was said with such venom that Harry had to be impressed. He had become increasingly jaded to life from living through the disasters in his dreams but also became more tolerant and accepting thanks to the experiences.

"Of course there isn't. I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation as to why the glass simply disappeared." His tone was calm and placating as he didn't want his uncle to get mad at him as it had been a good day for Harry. He had discovered that there was more than one type of magic and he had got an ice cream to boot.

"I'll be in my cupboard if you need me." Harry called out as they made their way into the entrance hallway of Number 4. He decided that he needed to think about everything he discovered today and felt that braiding some of the silk that his aunt had bought him was the perfect way for him to calm down and think about how everything changed with the discovery that he wasn't the only one to have magic.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 2

Harry spent the next few days after the fateful trip to the zoo focusing on his magic and bringing it into his core. It was slow going and comparing his current progress to his dreams it was moving at a snail's pace. He was focusing inwards and trying to wrap his magic around a spindle in his mindscape when Vernon demanded he get the post.

"Sure thing Uncle." Harry murmured back. He got up from the table and walked out into the hall and picked up said mail.

He came back in and placed them on the right to his uncle's plate and sat back down and wolfed down his meager rations.

He was about to get up from the table when he heard his uncle splutter and his curiosity made him turn around wondering what could have caused his uncle to react like that.

"Petunia… It's arrived." his uncle muttered to his wife. Said wife looked up and paled at the letter.

"They must be watching us. How else would they know the address of where he's sleeping." She seemed rather worried at that thought, thinking of all the freakish people who were hanging around the neighborhood.

"Right then, boy, you're going to be moved to Dudley's second bedroom. No questions. Get your things and go upstairs. NOW!" Vernon called out to the children in the house, ignoring the tantrum Dudley was throwing from the loss of his room but paid it no mind.

"What about the letter?" asked Harry "It is mine after all?" He stated in a calm tone and an eyebrow raised.

"Never mind the letter. It was the wrong person, now just get your things and go upstairs!" Vernon practically shouted, his face turning a reddish-purple that didn't look healthy on anyone.

Harry figured at that point that it would be more prudent to simply do as he told so he went back to his cupboard and slowly picked up everything he owned in one go and carried it all up, then went back and slowly unhooked his charms for light, warmth and comfort and almost reverently took them upstairs. The third trip he unraveled everything else back to its raw materials and carried them up in a basket that he had his aunt buy.

As he set everything up in his new room he decided that while he would like to read his letter at some point he wouldn't go out of his way to get one, figuring that if he was meant to read it he eventually would. He spent the rest of the week slowly storing his magic into his core and turning his mindscape into a spider's web with runes shaped into the rune at intersecting points for health and warmth.

This was the beginning of what he dubbed as the 'Moment of Mail Madness' as every day more and more letters made its way to the home of Number 4 Privet Drive. It took Vernon to moving the family away to some rock on the sea before everyone realized that it was futile and that this was simply meant to happen.

It was the night before Harry's 11th birthday and he was lying on the bare ground with only a thin blanket that would have provided him with warmth had he not been able to weave heat into the blanket and softness into the ground underneath him to avoid incurring the Dursleys wrath.

As he watched Dudley's watch tick away, counting down until it hit midnight and his birthday he relaxed onto the ground and wondered what sort of dream he would have this time since most of his dreams that had some significant event happen occurred on his birthday.

BOOM!

BOOM!

THUD!

The weather outside roared as the door collapsed and there stood a towering figure that was hidden by the darkness and was only slightly illuminated from the storm raging outside.

"Sorry 'bout that..." The towering figure boomed before making his way inside.

The giant strode in before propping the door back up and making sure it would stay. Turning around revealed a gentle smile and warm brown eyes as he looked over at Harry.

"I haven't seen you since you was a baby." said the giant as he finished his staring with affection enveloping his voice.

"I'm sorry but who are you?" Harry politely but also warily asked. He wasn't sure who this stranger was but he still felt inclined to throw up his magic web to ensure that nothing happened to his relatives.

"Right. I haven't introduced myself have I? The name's Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of the Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts Witchcraft and Wizardry." Hagrid proudly announced with a throw of his chest.

"The professors noticed that you haven't sent a reply so they sent me to find out what was the reason." He was obviously proud of the fact that he was trusted with the task so Harry felt it would be prudent to hold his tongue.

"I forbid you to tell him about any more of that nonsense. We swore when we took him in that wouldn't accept any of that nonsense!" Bellowed Vernon as he came down the staircase with a shotgun pointed at Hagrid.

"You knew?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course we knew. Ever since Lily came home from her first year with all sorts of freakish things from that school of hers I knew. Then you landed on our doorstep and I just knew you would be the same" Petunia spat.

"Oh. That's alright. I forgive you then. It must have been hard on you, I'm quite proud of you to have lasted as long as you have" Harry solemnly stated to the rest of the room to everyone's shock.

"Why aren't you surprised? Did you already know about magic? If you have then why haven't you answered your letter?" Hagrid spluttered looking shocked. The Dursleys weren't looking any better.

"I've known since I was 10. I just felt that either something would happen or I'd keep it a secret until I was old enough to leave." Harry smiled as he said this. "Where else do you think all the fitting clothes came from?" With that he mentally summoned a ball of wool from the basket he took with him everywhere and had it twine around his arm as an example of what he could do.

Hagrid was the first to recover from the shock of it all and reached into his pocket without prior warning, causing Harry to flinch and prepare to launch the wool that had begun to pool in his hands. He watched as Hagrid pulled out a letter and handed it to Harry.

"Here you go. Your very own Hogwarts letter." Hagrid handed it to him with a smile.

Harry read it and accepted everything without a hint of skepticism.

"How am I meant to send a reply and where do I buy all my things? What do I do if I don't have any money?" Harry shot question after question at Hagrid who merely chuckled and waved Harry off.

"We'll go tomorrow, it's getting pretty late right now. Now hold up let me just send the reply first before we go to sleep." After he said that Hagrid pulled out an owl, some parchment, ink and a quill that he used to write the message with before tying it to the owl's leg and checking that it was ready, tossed it out the door into the storm.

"Is that safe for the owl?" Harry inquired secretly worried about the bird's health flying in a storm of this severity.

"He'll be fine." Hagrid assured Harry before motioning him to go to sleep. "We've got lots of things to do tomorrow so best get some rest."

Harry was excited but settled down onto his patch of softened ground with a cushion as a pillow and decided that if he didn't get a dream then this was worth it.

The next day dawned with a bright sun unmarred by clouds and bird calls as Harry blinked away the sunlight wondering if everything that happened was real or a dream. He heard the fire crackling and looked over at Hagrid roasting some sausages that he seemed to pull from his never-ending pockets.

"Morning Harry. Did you sleep well?" Hagrid asked with a booming laugh that caused Harry to smile.

"I slept quite well thank you. When will we be leaving?" he replied cautiously, keeping his voice down to keep the peace between himself and the Dursleys who were looking over with disapproval and loathing.

"We'll be leaving soon, just after we eat and a cup of tea." Harry smiled at the idea of getting away from the island that was wet and gloomy that they were stranded on.

30 minutes later and the pair were climbing into a boat that looked like it wouldn't last another trip.

"You don't mind if I use some magic to speed up the trip do you?" Hagrid asked hopefully. "Strictly speaking I'm not allowed to use magic but who would know? You know?" Harry merely smiled and replied that he wouldn't tell a soul and they shared a grin before he pulled out an umbrella and tapped the side of the boat.

An hour later they were walking down Charing Cross Road and entering a shady looking pup called the Leaky Cauldron. Harry, already feeling uneasy simply standing outside the pub, brought up his web and wrapped it around himself in a spiraling pattern until he was sure that no one would be able to touch him and made his way cautiously into the unknown.

"The usual Hagrid?" called out the man at the bar.

"Not today Tom, I'm on Hogwarts business today" Hagrid boasted, clapping Harry on the shoulder and frowning when he didn't make contact.

Harry simply raised an eyebrow and stared at him then at everyone else who had fallen silent.

Hagrid looked properly chastised and hurried him forward before they could get mobbed.

"Bless my soul. It's Harry Potter." Tom was awestruck and then pandemonium happened. Harry grimaced and brought his shields up and pushed them outward until there was a meter gap between him and everyone else.

"If you'll excuse me I must be going. School things to buy and all that." Harry's tone was final and his green eyes hardened until they looked like chipped pieces of jade. People cowered away from his gaze and he moved forward with a smile.

"Thank you. Come along Hagrid." The crowd parted and the pair made their way unhindered to the wall separating the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley.

When they reached the wall Hagrid pulled out his umbrella and counted the bricks.

"Three up and two across." He tapped said brick as he counted and watched as they melded away. "Welcome Harry, to Diagon Alley."

Harry was spellbound as they made their way down the street, head turning to look at everything he could. Hagrid was chuckling as he watched Harry.

"None of that Harry. You'll have plenty of time to look at everything. First off though is Gringotts, the wizard bank." Hagrid steered Harry towards the large, white marble building and its armed guards. Harry's eyes widened as he took in the guards and through the doors.

"These folk are goblins Harry. Tricky folk but they take the guarding of gold seriously so it's one of the safest places there are."

They stood in line for a few minutes before a gravelly voice barked out.

"NEXT!"

The pair walked up to the free teller and just as they got there he looked and sneered at them.

"Yes?"

"We'd like to make a withdrawal from Harry's vault here." The goblin stared down at Harry and his eyes flicked at the scar on his forehead for an instant before calling for someone.

"GRIPHOOK! Take Mr Potter down to his vault for a withdrawal." The goblin in question nodded at the order and motioned for Harry to follow him.

"Oh I almost forgot. I need to get the You-Know-What from vault You-Know-Which." The goblin simply nodded and waved at Griphook who in turn nodded as well.

Two nauseating cart rides later and Harry had a feather light pouch with an expanded interior that had him fascinated.

"Robes next Harry. Tell you what, while you get sorted I'll get your potions stuff then I'll meet you at Madame Malkin's?"

"Sure thing Hagrid." The pair split up after reaching the robes store, with Hagrid making his way down the street and Harry steeling himself to enter the first store by himself.

The doorbell chimed as he entered. The store itself was like any muggle clothing store except with robes and cloaks as well as shirts and pants.

"Hogwarts dear? Just hop up on the stool here and we'll sort you out in an instant."

He obeyed the orders from the kind lady and stepped onto said stool. As he turned and faced the door he expanded his magical senses and gasped at the magic that was floating through the air and all the fabric. He was mesmerized.

He tried to take in as much as he could but was broken out of his trance when the assistant snapped her fingers in his face. The employees looked amused and slightly smug as he blushed.

"Your store is beautiful Ma'am. I can sense the magic and it's breathtaking."

Madame Malkin simply smiled and passed a slip of parchment to him.

"This book will help you get started, just don't forget us as your first stop." Harry looked down at the note and gaped at the title. 'First step to Magical Weaving.'

"Thank you Ma'am. How did you know?" Harry gave her a tight hug before jumping back, his face scarlet.

"Woman's intuition young lad. Now that's 30 galleons for the lot. I'll throw in a catalog of magical textiles for you to look through. It's always nice to see a budding weaver. Now go on. You have other things to buy I'm sure."

Harry spent the rest of the day in a daze, not realizing that he had ignored the blonde haired youth which was the reason why the employees in the store were laughing. The things he received from Madame Malkin had him in a daze although he snapped back into reality when they went into Flourish and Blotts where he picked up his school books and the extra books on magical weaving and wandless magic as he tried to figure out why he could do magic different to everyone else who had to rely on waving wands.

When he finally made his way back to Privet Drive it was with a full trunk full of school supplies, a cage with a snowy owl that Hagrid had gotten him and a wand that predicted an ominous future from a freaky wand seller.


	3. Chapter 3

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 3

September 1st greeted the world with clear skies and a shine that was picture perfect and sunbeams that struck the eyes of one Harry James Potter. Emerald eyes opened slowly accompanied with a low groan that echoed around the room.

Said Potter started stretching as per his usual habit, both his physical body and his magical core with a pulse that streamed out and attached itself to everything he deemed important on the day, today being his trunk and cage. As he got up and stood slowly, levering his legs off the bed, he flicked a hand at the snowy owl's cage, having dubbed her Hedwig from one of his history books, opening the lock and allowing her out to stretch her wings.

"Why don't you fly to Hogwarts and I'll meet you there? It's going be boring sitting on a train for a few hours." Harry suggested to his owl and acknowledged the positive hoot with a flick of his hand to the window and using a two part magical thread to unlock said window and lift it up. Hedwig flew to his shoulder for an affectionate nuzzle before flying out the window and soaring into the sky.

Harry looked at the alarm clock sitting on his bedside table and reading that it was slightly past 7 and decided to get dressed after having a shower. 30 minutes later saw him toweling dry his consistently messy hair that he groomed to one side to cover his lightning bolt scar that he received from a Dark Lord according to his history books that he purchased in addition to his school books and extra reading.

He put on form fitting jeans and a dark green button up shirt covered with a light cashmere silver jumper and proceeded to wrap more of his threads around his trunk which lifted it just slightly off the floor as to not look suspicious and making his way down the stairs.

"Good morning Uncle, Aunt. Did you sleep well?" he quietly asked his relatives as he saw that they were sitting at the table. They both acknowledged him with a nod, uneasy being the common mood after realizing that they were at his mercy should he feel like turning his magic on them. Harry, of course, knew that doing that would be immoral and that he would only do it if they tried to attack him but it still left an awkward atmosphere.

The clock hit am disrupting the tense environment that had been building up ever since he sat down and causing both Vernon and Harry to stand, both wanting to escape the awkwardness by taking him to King's Cross Station.

The trip to the station itself wasn't as bad as Harry had thought it would be but it could have been improved if the radio hadn't been turned on to a station that constantly played songs about leaving and fond remembrance.

It was just past 10 when Harry loaded up his trunk and Hedwig's empty cage on to an available trolley and started walking away with a backward glance and a slight wave that Vernon acknowledged with a brief nod before he made his way back to his car with a slight spring to his step.

Harry turned back to face forward and wryly thought that it was appropriate seeing as he was about to face a new path to his future. Before that though he had to find this elusive platform that he was meant to catch his train from.

Closing his eyes briefly he sent out a pulse of his magic letting his threads ricochet off everything that wasn't releasing ambient magic until he hit a large block that was roughly the size of one of the station's support pillars.

Harry opened his emerald eyes to reveal slightly glowing orbs that betrayed his mage sight, but also causing anyone that saw them to think it was a trick of the light. Following the threads that he could see he tracked a set of 5 to a group of 3 adults and 2 children that had trunks similar to his heading for the large block of magic.

Deciding that they would be the best place to start he set off slowly so as to not startle the group, alternating which thread that he actively followed in order to keep his unique magic a secret. He thought he was doing rather well when the older red haired lady looked back at him, directly at him and he sheepishly detached his threads now assured that this was the way he was supposed to be heading.

The stern woman continued to stare down at him in a contemplating manner, not noticing her subject's increasingly obvious distress. The other adults, however looked on in amusement as Harry practically cowered behind his trunk in order to avoid the woman's gaze.

When she became satisfied with whatever she was searching for she raised an eyebrow at the well-dressed young man and was waiting for something.

Harry took his cue from the woman and introduced himself calmly and politely.

"Good morning. My name is Harry Potter and it's a pleasure to meet you."

The woman's other eyebrow joined its counterpart and the other adults soon followed suit. The girls on the other hand squealed in surprise and blushed.

"Good morning to you too Mr Potter. My name is Amelia Bones and this is my niece Susan. The other adults with us are Patrick and Emily Abbott and their daughter Hannah. Now would you like to tell me about the tracking charm that used on us? Think of this as an unofficial warning about using magic outside of school."

Harry merely blushed at the warning causing the girls to squeal and Emily to coo at how adorable he was. Patrick on the other hand merely smiled at the young man's plight but also seemed interested in his answer.

"I'd love to but what is a tracking charm? Aside from the obvious of course?" Harry asked blankly, assuming that it would be out of his skill range, what with him not even having started school yet.

"A tracking charm is the piece of magic that you attached to each of us, designed to allow you to know where said persons are. It's normally used to follow criminals officially and children unofficially."

"Ah. Pardon my tone but I have no idea how to cast a tracking charm." The blunt statement was well received with the return of the arched eyebrows. "What I do know how to do is how to pulse my magic around me so that it attaches itself like threads to everything that has magic. I used it to find out which pillar was the correct one and used your group as a confirmation. Sorry about that." Harry finished his answer with a sheepish scratch of his neck.

"That's quite impressive for a child as young as yourself. I didn't even know that was possible." Amelia's reply was slow and measured while around her were 4 jaws that threatened to hit the floor with how low they were.

"I think it's merely how my magic chose to express itself since I thought I had magic before I got my letter. I dreamed of something similar when I was younger and I think it decided that this was the best fit for me so I didn't try to fight it. Now shall we get going? I don't want to miss the train on my first day." He teased the rest of the group and slowly pushed his way to the pillar before looking back.

"See you on the other side." He called before practically diving through onto the platform that held his past, present and future.

Harry had his breath stolen from him as he looked around the platform and gaped at the magnificence before him. He closed his eyes and pulsed once more as far as he could to take in as much as he could before recalling it to a respectable 10 meters around him as a safety net.

He soon felt 5 pulses as he noticed that the Bones and Abbotts make their way through the platform to stand by him.

"It's magnificent isn't it Harry. I still get the chills every time I see it." Patrick whispered to him as the ladies exchanged last minute goodbyes and hugs. "Look after yourself young man. I can see that you'll do great things but don't try to do it by yourself." With a clap on Harry's shoulder he turned and walked back to his family, intent of giving his daughter one more smothering hug much to her chagrin.

Harry merely smiled at the sight before wrapping his magic around his trunk and pulling it along where it started hovering an inch off the ground while he carried his owl's cage in his off hand. It was only after he stowed away his trunk that he realized that he forgot to bring out his wand.

Flicking his wrist caused his wand, holly and phoenix feather at 11 inches, to shoot out of his self-made holster, made out of leather and satin with Emelan runes for comfort, longevity and ownership between the layers. The leather itself was a dark brown almost black while the satin was a criss-cross of tan and a dark red.

Using his wand to close the blinds and guide his trunk back down from the rack he settled down to begin making the alterations that he wanted to make now that he had time. Pulling out his first set of school robes he decided that the most important thing he needed to add were the expanded pockets that he planned to add to everything he could.

He turned the robe inside out and flicked his wand at the interior side of the pocket, focusing on the runes for stability, and expansion to weave itself into the material using threads of his magic which he bound to the material. Now the pockets would only expand when it was in contact to his physical self, making it easier to keep track of where all of his things were.

He had just finished his robes and was about to start with his cloak when he felt two pulses from his web that were steadily coming closer to his compartment. He paused for a moment to see if he could recognize the pair and to his delight found that he could. Harry flicked his wand to the door and let the threads open the door for him seeing as he was in the corner with piles of his things scattered around him.

Seeing Susan and Hannah about to knock with startled looks on their faces brought a smile to his and he ushered them in and told them that they were welcome to join him. Blushing as they entered, they sat down on the opposite bench and looked on in wonder at the piles of stuff on the floor and around him.

"I see the goodbyes have been said." Harry summarized the events blandly, most of his focus was spent on obtaining the correct fabrics and imagining what he wanted to do before he started.

"Yup." Hannah replied, popping the 'p' of her reply. "We being the generous future Hufflepuffs that we are decided to not let you suffer without continued exposure to our wondrous selves any longer."

Susan elbowed Hannah with an arm before answering in a questioning tone.

"As long as that's alright with you?"

Harry just laughed at their antics.

"Everyone is welcome as long as they can behave. I'm going to be doing some more magic and making alterations to my cloak so as long as you don't disturb me there should be no more problems. I'm not good enough to do this without focusing."

He then proceeded to flick his wand at the door to close and lock it again before waving in a slow arc using threads to attach itself the blinds as its primary goal, before lifting up some red silk and golden threads to dump them on his side. Noticing that with the blinds closed it was quite dark so with another flick had a light charm made of a light blue wool attach itself to the luggage rack and give off a gentle glow.

"I'm about to begin." He warned the girls before stowing away his wand and using one hand to magically lift the cloak and using the other to unravel the first 5 inches from the bottom. The girls were spellbound as they watched their first piece of wandless magic and were inspired by the way the red silk wove itself in and around the thick woolen cloak.

The silk twined around the black wool for almost as if determining how to achieve its task before streaking to one side and plunging in and out like a dolphin having fun. Over the next 10 minutes the shape of red flames came into being at the bottom of the clothing with three layers of silk before the ball of wool joined the fray.

Even Harry had to admit that it would have been an amazing site had he not been focusing on making sure the silk did what it was meant to do. The girls found that they could not look away as they watched the speedy silk race down the track that it had made while the wool had enough time to secure itself at its own pace while being fast enough to finish said alterations at the same time as the silk.

Shaking his head at the silliness of the fabrics, he cut off the excess bits that he didn't need and had the short ends that were left over weave itself into the material leaving it as flawless as when he bought the original cloak.

Putting the material away he then focused his magic on the silk first and commanding it to give a warm glow, magically inscribing runes for heat, warmth and invisibility as a two stage and opposing process, allowing for him to having two levels of warmth in the airy castle as well being able to hide whenever he could. Focusing on how to achieve the invisibility was a puzzle that Harry couldn't figure out until the present moment.

Thinking about the fiery pattern brought an idea to mind so quickly Susan looked around for the brief flash of light that appeared in the room.

Harry on the other hand focused on giving the cloak the ability to develop a haze of heat that hid the wearer, but had to have access to his unique core since it wouldn't do to let anyone be able to go around invisible.

Tired yet satisfied at another breakthrough he had with his magic, Harry leaned back against the back of the chair and waved a fatigued hand, indicating for his stuff to pack itself back into his work basket. He looked up with a tired grin to take in their adoration at his magic.

The look he received however was not one he had ever thought he would witness.

Fangirls. Best nip this in the bud before it escalates.

"This is how it's going to work. You will repeat after me. You will not be fangirls." Harry's stern voice broke through to the girls.

"We will not be fangirls."

"You will not tell anyone about my magic."

"We will not tell anyone about your magic."

"You will not squeal in my presence."

"We will not squ-" "Not even a little?"

Harry and Susan looked at Hannah who had a bright blush on her face and moaned into her hands.

"I said that out loud didn't I?"

They just gave her a look with one eyebrow raised that were so eerily similar that it caused her to snort and everyone to start chuckling.

"Seriously though. No fangirls." Harry was insistent on this point. He refused to have his time at Hogwarts scarred by the presence of fangirls.

"Yes sir." The girls gave him mock salutes and started laughing again. Harry just smiled and reclined in his seat. He was always tired after undertaking a project like that. He found that clothes he wove held his magic much better than store bought clothing. Must be the magical saturation he figured.

Harry was deep in his thoughts about his theory of magical saturation that he barely noticed his web pulse about a lone figure that radiated magic filled with greed stopping outside his compartment.

Said boy who Harry dubbed as greed based on his magic barged in without so much as knocking and barking at Susan and Hannah to get out. The girls were shocked at the boy's rudeness and were mentally preparing to tear into the poor boy before Harry intervened.

"Can I help you?" Harry asked in a chilly tone. He despised rudeness with a passion. Using his dreams as a moral guideline, he adopted Lark's calm yet disappointed tone with Sandry's frosty temper. It didn't help 'Greed' that Harry's eyes were glowing.

Greed either didn't notice Harry's disapproval or didn't care as he blathered on and on about how he had finally found him and that they would be the best of friends. Susan was shocked at his behaviour with an eyebrow steadily raising as his rant moved into all the adventures they would have together. Hannah's expression turned to scorn and righteous fury as he moved into disrespecting them and their Huffleduffer ambiance. Albeit in a less than intelligent expression.

Harry drew the line however when the boy reached the end of his rant and asking to see his scar and if he remembered the night at all.

"…that's where You-Know-Who left the scar? Do you remember the night? Anything at all?" He looked around at the silence surrounding the compartment and the corridor outside as during his rant he noticed that he hadn't locked the door. "What?"

Everyone was speechless at the sheer audacity of the boy. He comes into their compartment, disrespects everyone inside and has the nerve to not notice. They'd think he was being brave but they all had one thought running through their mind at the moment. Idiot. A red haired pair of twins outside were groaning in to their palms which set off the entire crowd.

"Are you an idiot or were you just…"

"How dare you just…"

"Can't tell if you're being…."

"Were you dropped on your…."

Harry merely stared at Greed and his eyes glowed with authority and power and he decided that enough was enough. Idiots was the second thing on his list with only fangirls topping it.

"Enough." The one word cut through all the noise and everyone stared at the tiny first year able to command crowds with a word. It is said that this was where Harry started his reign as the Prince of Hogwarts.

"I have no idea who you are but I despise idiots. You think that barging into my compartment and telling my… friends… to get out that that would instantly endear you to me. Then you have the gall to continue to talk without allowing any of us to speak. Then you insult them even more and then even ask about the night my parents were murdered and asking if I could remember it. You sir are just so… I can't even express it. Just get out for everyone's sake. I can feel your idiocy permeating the air around me and I fear it's contagious."

Having finished his rant he stood and stared out the window with his hands cross behind his back waiting for him to leave. He listened to the whispers of the people in the corridor and could feel the awe as people finished digesting his speech and at the eloquent way he spoke.

"Well?" He barked "Why are you all still here?"

Greed jumped into action and ran out into the hall and away from the figure of awe that he insulted while the teens in the corridor felt the odd compulsion to salute and march away. Which they did. All of them. While laughing.

Harry just groaned as he sat back down and wished the train would hurry up and arrive at the school. Susan and Hannah were having the time of their lives on the floor laughing at everything that happened when they were interrupted yet again.

"Behaving like the commoners yet again Bones. You're even where they belong, the filth." The derision and disgust in the voice spoke to Harry of yet another idiot. Harry was beginning to wonder if Hogwarts was full of them. Instead he merely sighed and mentally began preparing himself to tear into yet another person and they hadn't even arrived yet.

"I heard that Harry Potter is in this compartment. Oh it's you. The filth that ignored me in Diagon Alley. You'll find that some families are better than other's Potter and I can help you there." With that said he stuck out a hand to shake.

Harry had a contemplating look on his face, to everyone else he looked like he was thinking about whether or not he would accept which had Susan and Hannah nervous and outraged, but in reality he was organising his points until he was satisfied.

"Now listen here you little brat. First off you're rude and I hate rude people. Second of all, what are you going to do if I decline? You look like the type to run off to daddy when things get tough and you have no idea how to solve a problem yourself. Third the reason I ignored you was because I found the clothing more interesting than you and that's saying something. Finally, I am more than capable as to determine who my friends are and you sir are definitely not it. Now get out before I make you."

Harry's face was fixed with a sneer so cold it seemed frozen and his eyes were practically smoking with the magic radiating out of them. The boy and his henchmen seemed frozen in shock and took a moment to react to the second crowd gathering outside the compartment, not that he knew that. The crowd thought it was hilarious. They were a mix of all the years above Harry's and they all basked in the delight of him ripping in to people with that lovely royal demeanour.

"All hail Prince Potter." Called out a random 7th year with a black and yellow tie symbolising Hufflepuff.

After the call finished everyone outside saluted and walked back to their own compartments laughter mixing with all other houses.

Harry just sighed and put his face into his hands.

"Why are there so many idiots here?" He asked good-naturedly gesturing to the dispersing crowd. "At least they offset the bad…"

"Prince Potter? I like it" Hannah snorted, bring Harry back to the present.

"Are we there yet? I'm so hungry after dealing with idiots I just want to eat and go to sleep."

The rest of the trip went soundly, with Harry pulling on his robes before leaving so that the girls could get changed. As he stood outside, the people in the surrounding compartments came out and clapped him on the shoulder or back in amusement before walking back in when their friends were done changing.

The next hour was a flurry of movement as they moved from the train to the boats which they were going to use to make their way across the lake. As he helped Susan and Hannah into a boat he discreetly spelled their robes to be waterproof which he planned to take off after they reached the shore before climbing in after them.

Harry lost his breath in awe as they rounded a corner and there stood the castle that gleamed in Harry's mage sight. Hundreds of streamers and threads danced around the castle, showing the differences between the students, teachers, portraits, armour and ghosts, all interweaving and leaving trails in Harry's sight.

The first years were then handed over to a stern woman who towered over them with a glowering expression. She described the houses and that they would be family and that they should behave in a manner that would you their houses proud. She left after that and the first years were left chatting to themselves while they waited.

Harry was leaning against a wall with Susan and Hannah at his sides when he was approached by idiot 1 and 2 with henchmen 1 and 2 following behind idiot 2. He nodded to the henchmen as they hadn't done anything to him except be there by association. The henchmen were surprised but nodded back, respect in their eyes but remained stoic.

"Idiots 1 and 2, what can I do for you?"

"No one talks to me…."

"When my father hears…."

"Oh yes tell your father…."

"What do you know…."

Harry just stared at the chaos surrounding him and wondered just why these things had to happen to him.

"Gentlemen, which I really think you don't deserve the title, I do believe you had something to say to me. If you don't then I suggest you move along as Professor McGonagall does not look pleased." Said woman did in fact not look pleased judging by the fact that everyone except the two idiots were in line.

The two boys looked properly chastised and moved into different spots in the line, determined to get away from the other.

The sorting wasn't very interesting in Harry's opinion, the song he didn't pay attention to as he was focusing on the Hat in a very predatory way, just itching to examine how the magic was weaved into the hat and how it was given partial sentience.

He noticed that Susan and Hannah were both sent to Hufflepuff while the rest of their peers passed by in a haze until it reached his name.

"Potter, Harry."

Harry started at this not noticing it reach his turn, too focused that he was on studying the Hat when he could. As the whispers and stares locked in on him he steeled himself and his expression, holding a careful demeanour that was part graceful royalty but also welcoming commoner.

A certain 7th year Hufflepuff stood up and shouted from their place in the table

"All hail Prince Potter!" All the students who had saluted Harry on the train stood up from their place and saluted once more to the laughter of everyone in the Hall before sitting down once more. Harry searched out each of those who stood and smiled at each person individually with an exaggerated bow before making his way to the stool and placing the Sorting Hat on to his head.


	4. Chapter 4

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 4

" _Prince Potter, at last we meet._ " Harry mentally groaned the moment he heard the word prince.

"Even you?" Harry lamented. "You've only seen me for 10 minutes."

The Hat chuckled at his whining. " _I've heard the stories and whispers about you from the older students for at least 30. Now let me take a look inside your head so we can find out where you belong._ " With that Harry felt the Hat probe his head with magic.

" _Well look at this. Most first years never have a mindscape this developed so soon. You've seen some terrible things haven't you. Buried alive, pirates, forest fires and plague. It's no surprise that you're able to act so much more mature than you look. These ladies who you have modeled yourself after would be quite proud to have raised you physically if they could."_

" _You have quite the passion for learning. Contemplating magical theory at your age. HA! Rowena would have gobbled you up in an instant but that's not where you need to go now is it."_

" _Lots of bravery and courage to stand up for those who cannot stand for themselves. Godric would be proud."_

" _Ability to know when to reveal yourself, your skills and your plans for the future would have Salazar salivating but that's neither here nor there._ "

" _No, you belong with Helga's brood. Steadfast and unwavering, loyal and supportive. Yes, you'll fit right in there._ "

" _One last word of advice your highness."_ Harry snorted at that last point. It seemed like he would never get rid of it now. " _Beware of Dumbledore. While I doubt he would be able to influence you directly, he will not hesitate to use your friends and acquaintances to guide you into doing what he wants. Now go join your new housemates in…_ "

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The black and yellow table exploded into applause and cheers. The upper years standing up and chanting in time with clapping.

"PRINCE POTTER! PRINCE POTTER! PRINCE POTTER!" Harry just shook his head in amusement before making his way down to sit next to Hannah and Susan as the sorting continued. He nodded to the upper years who waved at him and shook hands with those closest to him as they introduced themselves to him on a more personal level.

"Justin Finch-Fletchley"

"Wayne Hopkins"

"Megan Jones"

"Ernie Macmillan"

"A pleasure to meet you all." He said before turning to Susan and Hannah and asking for the name of 'idiot 2' since he wasn't paying attention to most of the sorting. Everyone sitting around them snorted at the description but replied nonetheless.

"Idiot 2 is Draco Malfoy. He's pretty much as you described. A spoiled brat who runs to his daddy when the going gets tough." Susan was the one who answered him as she knew the pure-blooded circles better than Hannah did.

Harry nodded in understanding before looking up at the quickly diminishing line of first years waiting to be sorted.

"Oh look. It's 'idiot 1'. I wonder where he's going to go."

The Hat was on the boy's head for only an instant before it declared its decision to the world.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The boy looked slightly disappointed as he looked over at Harry who merely raised an eyebrow before looking away, clearly disinterested.

The last of the first years was sorted in Slytherin before Headmaster Dumbledore stood to address the Hall.

"Now that the first years are all sorted let me say a few words before we dig in to the wonderful feast. Nitwick! Oddment! Blubber! Tweak!" With that he sat down and the tables suddenly groaned under the spread of wonderfully cooked food.

Platters of meats of all kinds, vegetables and salads dispersed plentifully along the table, pitchers of juice standing as barriers between the meats and vegetables with tureens of gravy surrounding them. Stacks of bread and rolls were passed down the rows as the students helped themselves and the chatter increased as the children got more and more excited.

Harry helped himself to slices of beef, lamb and chicken, liberally pouring gravy on them before piling vegetables on one end of his plate and a dinner roll on the other to soak up the gravy before digging in with gusto as he listened to the others talk about their families.

Of all the new first years only Justin was a muggleborn while the rest were either purebloods or halfbloods. When it was his turn he merely smiled and told them that they already knew his ancestry but that he lived with his non-magical relatives. He refused to refer to them as muggles, as if they were different than they were. Other than that though he kept silent but listened with an attentive ear, soaking in the ambiance of comfortable noise.

He was feeling quite full and relaxed when he felt something tug at his web that he spiraled around himself. He frowned and pulsed his magic in the direction of the tug. While there was general hostility in one direction, by focusing more he found that one was entwined with hurt while the other was seeped in anger.

Turning to one of the closer upper years, a brown-haired third year by the name of Diggory, he asked who the man in the turban was.

"That's Professor Quirrell. He's teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. Why are you asking about Quirrell? It's Professor Snape, the black haired one you should be worried about. He only favors his own house of Slytherin." Cedric asked in a curious tone and a smile on his face. Here was the Prince himself and he could liken him to a King gazing among his subjects.

"Hmmm. No reason comes to mind but I get a feeling of malice coming from Quirrell. I'd spread the word to be on your guard but not worry too much. Snape on the other hand is harmless. Well not harmless…" He trailed off at the gaping expressions of the older students around him. "He wouldn't actively harm any of the students. Deep down he has morals. Very, very deep… OOOH! Desert!"

Everyone just shook their heads at the transition between Prince and child, watching as he dived into his treacle tart with unhindered glee.

After an ear-shattering rendition of the school song, the students were dismissed and were soon making their way to their dormitories. The Hufflepuff contingent stopped outside a stack of barrels and were looking at the 5th year prefect as she cleared her throat.

"Pay attention to how you open entrance to our common room. You need to tap the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff on the second barrel only. The others have been trapped to ensure safety from pranksters. Now come inside." The first years scrambled in and gaped at the round room furnished with tasteful tapestries and comfy couches and armchairs arranged in circles around the room.

"Girls dormitories are on the left while boys are on the right. Due to the amount of space in the dungeons where we are everyone gets their own room so no complaining! Now get to bed little minions." With that dismissal the youngest students soon scampered off to find their rooms.

When Harry entered the room that had his name on a brass nameplate he noticed that his trunk was against the bed with his basket sitting on top. Deciding that providing additional privacy protections would be his first way of decorating he opened his basket and pulled out some yellow and black ribbons that he felt would achieve the results he wanted perfectly.

He soon pulled out his wand and directed them to the door, channeling his magical threads down the hilt that he had wrapped in tan linen, magically spelled for grip, and down the twin green silk threads, also spelled but for focus instead, that twined around the length of his wand until they met at the tip. He had discussed with Ollivander about additions to his wand and if they would disrupt the way the wand worked.

Ollivander had insisted on seeing how he used his magic and what would be added before allowing Harry to adorn his wand with extras. They had spent half an hour debating the theory that the linen and silk would allow his to cast his unique wandless magic while still looking like he was using wand based casting and insisted that he watch Harry as he prepared and attached the silk first before blending it into the linen.

Black and yellow ribbons streamed around him as they wrapped around each other while Harry focused on privacy and safety into the fabric before guiding them to wrap around the top of the door frame. He then looked around and noticed that he had a window that he determined would show the weather outside so that he could dress appropriately in the mornings. He charmed the thin curtains into thicker, black block out blinds that wouldn't blind him in the mornings.

Deciding that anything else he could do the next morning or when he had free time, he pulled out a pair of shorts and a loose T-shirt and a spare change of underwear before grabbing his towel and jumping to the shower, tossing the dirty clothing into the hamper located in the bathroom.

Harry awoke the next morning as the light charm he had set up turned from a dull glow into uncharmed wool, while the alarm charm that coincidentally looked like a clock pulsed that it was now 6AM. Performing his morning ablutions before getting changed into his uniform he took a last look at himself in the mirror. His tie was slightly askew, collar was ruffled and his jumper that wasn't sitting correctly all fixed themselves with a wave of his hand before putting on his robe.

Turning around he walked towards his door and sent a pulse of magic into the two ends of the ribbons allowing for the wards to fall before marching off to the common room. Exiting the Hufflepuff dorms he headed for the 2nd floor mindful of the warning about painful death the Headmaster had warned the students of before they were dismissed. Shaking his head at the folly of old men he entered the library and asked Madam Pince for books about magical theory and application.

Snorting at the audacity of overachieving first years she decided to humor him and pointed him to the correct shelves and a stern warning about damaging her books. Harry nodded in acceptance before rushing into the shelves with a glee unlike his dessert rush. Sending out a gentle pulse to ensure that the books weren't damaged he soon found what he was looking for in the book titled 'Elements and Applications of Raw Magic'.

Harry had immediately sat down for breakfast, plate full, goblet topped up and book propped against a pitcher of juice and he was in his own world. He made noises of acknowledgement to those who greeted him but didn't look up, enthralled in the subject that he was reading about. The author had hypothesized that it would be possible to change the basis of an article under the assumption that the reader could infuse their magic into the object without the need for spells.

He was utterly gleeful at he could already do that, bypassing the need to be able to cast both silently and wandlessly, and when he reached the point where it claimed that when this was possible the only limit was the readers imagination he began to cackle. Cackle long and hard which turned into hysterically evil laughter that creeped out a fair share of Ravenclaws and Gryffindors who looked alarmed that this was occurring so early in the year. The Slytherins simply looked interested in what he was reading to cause such a reaction.

It was only with the sound of lightning that brought Harry back to reality. Nodding at the 6th year who had his wand out and helpfully supplying the lightning and receiving a salute in return brought a smile to his face.

Coughing into his hand and schooling his expression he greeted those sitting near him noticing that it was the initial group who started the spread of 'Prince Potter'. He looked around and noticed that everyone from all houses were sitting around him and he decided to play up to his new nickname and banged his empty goblet onto the table after carefully stowing the borrowed book.

"I hereby declare the first meeting of the Potter's Guard to order." The smiles and laughter that answered him was more than enough for Harry and breakfast dissolved into barely contained chaos, laughter and jokes tossed around with pieces of food flying in between. It was when a piece of bacon flew onto the Head Table that the teachers decided to intervene and descended upon the Guard to hand out schedules and scolding's galore.

Noticing that his house had a majority of classes with Ravenclaw cause him to sigh with relief and flop onto Susan's shoulder causing the girl to blush as dark as her hair, much to the delight of everyone around, Guard or not.

"Rejoice my fair lady as we shan't suffer from the presence of idiots 1 and 2 except for the two classes that we have with Gryffindor and Slytherin. Rejoice I say." With that he pulled himself off and tossed two slices of toast, a few slices of bacon and an egg into the air and discreetly used his wand to tie it all together before it landed on his plate to the amazement of the students and Professor Flitwick.

"10 points to Hufflepuff for that exciting display Mr Potter. It looks like you've been studying ahead."

"Yes sir. The material and theory of magic is just amazing that I could spend a lifetime studying it and never reaching a finale." Harry answered. "Also that's Prince Potter Professor." He added with a humorous sneer that lost its effectiveness when everyone around him snorted, causing him to pout and cause even more laughter.

With that Harry's mornings became routine. With Susan and Hannah sitting by his sides with the Potter Guard surrounding him and a book propped up against a pitcher the days soon melded into weeks until it came to a point where the idiots had to resurface.

The book the day idiot 1 aka Ronald Weasley confronted Harry he had been reading up on elemental transfiguration. Being able to cast wandlessly assisted in his understanding of how magic worked and Harry had recently become capable of being able to manipulate magic with his bare hands, thus giving birth to sculptures made of magic and crystallized into a physical form which he made in his down time.

He had just turned the page when he noticed a shadow looming over him. He didn't bother looking up as he pulsed and got the impression of red from the robes in front of him, knowing then that it was idiot 1 that he was dealing with.

"Yes?" he drawled, seemingly unimpressed on the outside while he lamented at the lack of freedom from those of lesser intelligence on the inside. Most of the Potter Guard snorted as if they could sense his lament and a helpful Ravenclaw conjured an illusion of a shower over his head.

With a snap of his fingers, the Ravenclaw cancelled the illusion and snapped off a salute before turning back to his breakfast.

"What can I do for you….?" It didn't help Ron's temper when he struggled to place a name to the face that had been bugging him for the past month.

"Weasley!" snarled said red head, his face turning a rather vibrant shade of scarlet. Harry looked at Weasley's face rather interested not in his person but whether or not it could get darker.

"Is there something you need Weasley as I believe that you are skipping breakfast…"

"You think you're so great, strutting around and lording over everyone else during meals. Well I've had enough. I challenge you to a duel. Tonight at midnight in the Trophy Room. Be there or show everyone what a coward you are." Weasley declared smugly, thinking himself as having made a rather brilliant duel.

Harry was not impressed as judged by the rest of his guard based on the drop of sweat on his forehead and the strained eyebrow as it tried to climb into his hair. He merely tilted his head, made a grunting noise and waved him away.

"Are you actually going to go?" The concerned 7th year color changing Hufflepuff that liked to announce whenever he arrived asked.

"Eh, maybe. Depends on if I can sleep or not. Why? Is there some important backlash if I don't show up?"

"I'm not sure. For one you're students and couldn't hurt a fly. Two, neither of you are of age and three I guess it would be better if you went just in case. Wouldn't want to lose our prince due to laziness now would we."

"Ok then." Harry agreed happily before turning back to his book, entirely unaffected by the possible loss of magic. He knew that he could get there and away without being detected, having tested his form of invisibility by sitting in on a staff meeting without anyone noticing. He had recently developed a new rune to cover his scent by combining runes for invisibility and scent which masked it similar to his heat haze.

The next few hours passed in a blissful state of monotony. Enter, take notes, cast spells, take more notes then leave. Harry reveled in it. It was unfortunate that the blandness of his day was ruined by idiot 2 aka Draco Malfoy.

"Potter. You. Me. Duel at Midnight in the Trophy Room unless you're scared." The message was accompanied by a horrible sneer that made him look like he was trying to get something from the back of his mouth.

Harry just slammed his head into the table. Over and over again. Hannah tried to stop him and ended up simply patting the back of his head while whispering soothing words into his ear whereas Susan rubbed his back. With his head on the table he took in a deep breath and gave a grunt which Malfoy took as an affirmative, leaving with another terrible sneer and a failed Snape twirl of his robes that made him look like he was doing a pirouette.

He stayed like that with his forehead resting on the table for a minute before taking a deep breath and slipping into his Prince Potter persona as he raised his head.

"Idiots. How have they survived until now I honestly have no clue! I'm done. I'll meet you girls at class, I need to be alone for a little bit." With that said he swept out of the Hall, back straight, book bag slung over his shoulder and robes billowing in a way that had Snape nodding in approval, much to the shock of the other Professors.

Harry spent the rest of the day in an indifferent mood, partly irritated at the loss of a choice to sleep and partly from not having a chance to finish his book and a small, very miniscule part indifferent to the fact that he had to attend 2 duels at the same time, in the same place. Honestly. They could at least choose different nights to have the duel. Unless they were collaborating. Harry shook his head at that thought, he honestly felt that they weren't intelligent enough to collaborate for something like that.

So it was with an air of defeat that Harry set off for the Trophy room at 11PM and curfew in full effect. The few members of the Guard staying up cheered as he left the portrait hole before making their way to bed, knowing that Harry would be fine.

Harry was just glad that he had brought his book and a miniaturized light charm that he could hang around his neck.

As he entered the Trophy room he looked around and chose to sit on the ground in front of the Quidditch Cup display, not knowing that just above him sat a cup that said 'James Potter – Most goals scored in a single season'. He leaned back against the case and set up a 1 meter radius around him that cut off everything radiating out with himself as a center point.

The metaphorical clock struck 12 and Harry put his book away into his expanded pocket with a sigh, preparing himself for whatever childish antic he would encounter tonight. Luckily for him, however, he didn't remove his ward as it was neither Weasley nor Malfoy but the care taker instead.

"Sniff around my dear. I received two tips that there would be someone here tonight." Harry's eyebrow rose once more and sighed at the wasted time he could have spent sleeping, or at the very least, somewhere comfortable. Like the common room perhaps.

The caretaker remained in the Trophy Room for another half hour and by default so was Harry as he hadn't figured out how to move the field so there he was, calmly sitting on the ground in his warm spelled cloak as he waited for his chance to retreat when there were noises coming from both ends of the Trophy Room hallway.

Surprise, surprise, in burst both Weasley and Malfoy wondering why they hadn't heard Harry shouting and complaining and generally acting like a child and with both Filch and Harry hidden from view, they both thought they were the only ones there so began snarling at each other and throwing minor jinxes and hexes and making an awfully loud racket that alerted the teachers and brought them running.

Harry felt a sigh rip though his body as he came to the realization that he would either get back to his dorm room very early or not at all. He decided that he would cut his losses, pulled up his hood, relaxed against the cabinet making himself very comfy and watching the idiots get into trouble. All in all Harry felt as if the night was worth it even though he would be incredibly skittish and snappy when he wakes up. He would definitely need to see if he could share memories.

'Maybe someone in the Guard would know' He mused as he entered a meditative trance as a way to pass the time.


	5. Chapter 5

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 5

When Harry woke up and found himself in the Trophy Room he knew that it was going to be a bad day. Tired, sore and very, very irritated he stalked back down the stairs back to the Hufflepuff dorm and tapped the password and entered in a storm of cloak and very liberal amounts of swearing.

He had his royal persona in full bloom and the Hufflepuffs instinctively knew that they should stay out of his way and all were silent as he went into his room and took a long, hot shower that washed away most of his fatigue. When he finished he was calmer than when he walked in but decided that from now on he would deal with Weasley and Malfoy as if they were 5.

Smiles were passed around as greetings were muttered and Harry nodded as the Guard formed around him as it had become natural for both him and them and now it was a running joke and Hogwarts fact. Harry was the first to sit and sorted out his plate full of appropriate foods for a balanced diet. He was halfway through when Susan and Hannah scooted into place beside him and he relaxed slightly more now that he had his closest friends by his side.

Harry had just finished his food and placed the plate away from him and pulled out another book, this one titled 'Magic and Mastery' which described all the ways that a wizard or witch could use their magic to gain greater control. He was intent on being able to manipulate the way he cast spells similar to the way he could control cloth and had already realized that it would be a long journey until he was able to do it.

Hearing the great rumble that announced the presence of the rest of the students he cast a wide spread web along the ground that would tell where people walked in a radius of 5 meters. After the disaster last night he refused to be caught unaware again. The floor was definitely not as comfy as he first thought. He was just thankful that he only had Herbology and flying before lunch with Charms after.

Harry wasn't sure if he was going to go to the Halloween Feast being the anniversary his life turned upside down and he was determined to not ruin it for anyone, at least not willingly. Feeling his web senses tingle drew out another groan from his poor tired body as the reasons for his body's condition were marching over to him, once again coincidentally together.

"Potter, how dare you…"

"You think you're so…."

"When my father hears about this…"

"You'll get yours…."

Hearing that last bit caught Harry's attention and he brought all of his focus on the poor children that had ruined a perfectly planned night of reading in bed.

"Was that a threat Weasley? Just because you're mad that you got caught last night does not give you the right to threaten other people. If you weren't so caught up with yourself you would have realized that everything that has happened has been because of your behaviour towards other people and the jealousy that you seem to have with me for some reason."

"Don't think you're off the hook either Malfoy. I'm sick and tired of both of your power plays trying to make your way into the school hierarchy when you obviously have no idea what you are doing, or what the world is really like. So I suggest that you both get off the pedestals that you've placed each other and myself on and understand that in real life, you don't get everything you want straight away, you earn it and you can't rely on anyone like a famous figure or daddy with lots of money to grease your way in. Now DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

His anger was a verbal Warhammer that slammed into them over and over and while watching a tiny first year verbally dissecting two boys bigger than him was amusing the upper years couldn't help but nod along with what he was saying. His words struck a chord with them and they all nodded in agreement that outside of Hogwarts houses meant nothing so promised themselves to be more open minded. An amused Guard flicked his wand at the two boys and an illusion of large iron ball and chains appeared attached to each limb, each ball saying something about the boys like 'jealous' and 'immature'.

The boys nodded and ran back to their own tables, cowering under the disapproving glares of the older students who had a look at the house points. Both Gryffindor and Slytherin were 50 down and it was clear everyone knew who was responsible if the glares were anything to go by.

Harry just sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He wished it didn't have to come to this but the way the two behaved during their year wide flying class, well he just couldn't allow them to continue. He also started wondering if this was what puberty felt like. He heard about this elusive period of body changes but every time he asked someone they would just coo and pinch his cheeks if he asked girls or pat his head when the students were male and constantly told him they'd tell him 'when he was older'.

* * *

The day had been bright and cheerful and the mood contagious as the youngest students in the castle filed down to the lawn where they would be learning to fly. Stories that got more and more outrageous were thrown around, with some that would clearly be breaching the Statute of Secrecy if they were real.

Most prominent among those who were telling stories were the 'detestable duo' and henchmen. Harry sighed and leaned onto Susan practically demanding to be carried and/or dragged. He honestly wasn't fussed. He would much rather be in the library. He had been having ever so much fun with Granger leaving behind contradicting notes on whatever she was studying and moving things so that they were slightly out of place. Not that she knew of course, that was part of the fun.

Unfortunately they were both here with the rest waiting to partake in the death trap that was flying. He wasn't scared. Far from it. It was just that he would prefer experimenting with his magic and fabrics, he had almost had a breakthrough but had been called down for this waste of time. The girls seemed happy so he supposed that was one thin. Happy girls meant more experimenting time for Harry who despite being the mature 11 year old that he was, was also 11 years old and a boy on top of that so naturally thought explosions were cool.

He had 'appropriated' an unused classroom on their side of the dungeons and warded it to the nines with his magic and fabric ward stones. He had looked up warding and determined that his charms held a similar purpose and was mentally restructuring all his notes to replace charms with ward stones. Harry was determined to be able to change his fabrics make-up for an on contact effect but was having some concentration problems. He figured that he hadn't had a need desperate enough for it to work.

Breaking out of his thoughts he absently walked over to one of the brooms and looked around at everyone else and down at his ever present mage kit. He looked over at where he should place it and figured he would just stick it to himself while they flew.

"Now place your right hand over the broomstick and say up." Madam Hooch, a no-nonsense woman who took the safety of her students seriously was watching them all with a stern gaze as if daring them to put a toe out of line.

"UP!" Cried out 30 voices, with some displaying more awe than others, mainly those whose broomsticks who actually rose when asked. Harry looked around and saw that aside from himself, Susan, Hannah and Draco there were only 5 others whose brooms had risen.

"Now place your right leg over the broom, adjust your hands like so and wait for me to check you first." Hooch barked out as she walked down the line helping and adjusting the grips of those who had it wrong.

Harry had a feeling that something was going to go wrong that would ruin his day so he prepared himself for anything, double checking his wand and the materials in his basket that he kept around for emergencies.

"On the count of three you will push gently off the ground, hover for a few moments then touch back down. Now on three. One. Two. Thr-." Before she could hit the count of three however, the broom of Longbottom Harry noted decided it didn't want to stay grounded and shot up from the ground, bucking wildly.

Harry just sighed at the loss of his peace and set off on his own broom, standing on the handle and sticking himself to it, treating it like a hovering skateboard. Tracking Longbottom's progress he made sure to stay a few paces behind even as he reached into his basket and pulled out a twice folded piece of linen which he then chain spelled for enlargement, rigidness and support and threw it like a card as Longbottom lost his grip on his broom and started falling.

When he saw that the linen was in the right area, he activated the spells causing it to enlarge and spread out where it would hopefully catch the poor boy. Harry then weaved streamers of his magic from his wand as a second level of support into a net with slightly larger gaps before lowering him down the last few feet onto the ground.

With his wand acting as a baton Harry guided Longbo… Neville back to Madam Hooch, using the linen as a makeshift stretcher in case something broke during the crazy ride he had just survived. Said Professor nodded in approval of his actions and gave him 20 points for saving a fellow student from painful injury.

As she finished examining Neville she announced that it was just shock and declared that she would take him to the Hospital Wing and that if she saw anyone in the air without her she'd have them in detention so quickly it would be as if they took a dive. With that said she marched the boy half dragging up the path and into the Castle itself.

Harry waved his wand at the linen cancelling the spells on it before pulling it back as he reeled in his magic to put it back into his basket. He ignored the commotion as he figured the danger had passed, determining that everything was in order with a focused gaze before making his way back to the group, deciding that the broom would be faster and gliding back to them.

"What's up?" he asked nonchalantly to the flabbergasted stares of everyone around him. Harry raised an eyebrow and looked around.

'Why is everyone staring?' he thought?

He turned to Hannah who he hoped would explain and she took the expression for what it was.

"Don't mind us. It's just not every day you see a student saving another with a few waves of his wand." She said dryly. Harry then turned down to look that floor in front of her. Suddenly self-conscious at the serious gaze he was looking at the floor, she blurted out "What is it?" before she could help herself. Harry grinned, knowing that it would get to her.

"Could of sworn I saw the sarcasm dripping down." He said cheekily, to which she groaned and slapped him on the shoulder.

Rising voices came to Harry's attention as idiots 1 and 2 were at it again. Spells were already flying as both houses had wands out and were preparing to enter the fray with the Ravenclaws standing well away, watching with interest while the Hufflepuffs crowded around, determined to protect their prince.

He sighed once more and turned to address Susan.

"Why are they arguing this time?"

"I think I heard something about the rememberall Neville got from his grandmother" was the helpful reply. Good old Susan, always knowing what's going on.

He figured he would let it be since they were just first years but then some decided to take off on their brooms to escalate the conflict. Things were getting quite serious and Harry decided to intervene when they started shooting spells from the brooms which would definitely not end well. That was when he surged forward, eyes blazing with his 'Puffs at his back.

"ENOUGH." That was all he said and evidently all that was needed. He noticed a few who backed away either not wanting to fight or just not interested. Granger for one. Patil, Red Patil, he corrected himself, had broken away and stood with her sister while Brown was gleefully throwing spells with Perks. Davis, Greengrass and Zabini had also stood to the side with the Ravenclaws. He guessed that Ravenclaw meant neutral in this conflict. The rest of the Slytherins were throwing hexes like it was a standoff.

Harry kicked open and magically pulled out streamers from his basket, intended for one time uses and fully stocked for crowd control in case he ever had to restrain idiots. Like now. He sent them flying through the air as they unraveled to wrap around the 6 flying first years, while simultaneously rolling balls of green wool to those who stayed on the ground and spelling all of his fabrics with suppression magic, designed to hold the magic in.

He felt that he timed himself perfectly and managed to secure all of the violent students in one go and wrapping them into cocoons before pulling them back to him. Lining them up one by one in their cocoons he made sure to separate them so that one member was surrounded by two of the other house except for the ends, which he left separate, and contemplated for a moment. Shaking his head he rearranged them into a circle, all facing outward instead. When he was done he manipulated the brooms until they floated above each student and wrapped magic around the broom, giving them added magical strength to support the weight of each student

Commanding the brooms to float until they were hanging each student one foot above the air he let them have it.

"Now I don't really care about your personal vendettas with each other but I care when you can get bystanders involved. I'll admit that I have a long fuse but even then there are times where your sheer incompetence is staggering. Did you at least think to angle yourselves so that the other students wouldn't get hurt? No, you didn't. Did you think to use some shield charms to minimize the damage? Again, the answer is no, and what were you thinking throwing spells while you were on a broom. Merlin it's like you want to die. Is that what you want?"

At this point in his rant he was beyond furious and failed to notice the Professors gathering behind him. The students not involved noticed and were about to point it out to him but were silenced by amused fingers to lips singling for silence.

"Now I am going to undo one of your gags and you will tell me what I want to know or so help me… I'm so furious I don't even know what I'm going to do." Harry spun the circle of students until he found what he was looking for. Waving his wand he undid the gag.

"THOMAS! What was this about and if the answer is Neville's rememberall I'm spinning the lot of you anyway!"

All Harry got was silence as Thomas tried to look at everything except Harry and noticed the Professors with glee but it soon fell as it looked like they were waiting for answers as well.

"I see…" Harry's voice was glacial as he waved his wand dispelling the gags on the students before waving in an exaggerated horizontal wave and starting to spin the wheel of students keeping it at a moderate speed so that they wouldn't throw up but too queasy to eat dinner.

He turned around met the gaze of the Heads of House staring at him. He stood with a straight back, not allowing them to discipline him for berating idiots who were being a danger to themselves and others. He had his morals.

"What can I do for you professors?" Harry asked in a steadfast voice, refusing to waver. He kept his gaze mostly on Professor Sprout as his head of house but was inwardly shocked at the pleased smile on her face. 'Must be the jealousy on the other Professors faces.' He mused.

"Take 25 points for stopping the violence before anyone got hurt." Sprout delightedly declared.

"Another 25 for wonderful wand work and spell choice." Added Flitwick.

"25 for a suitable punishment although you should leave it to the Professors next time Potter." McGonagall stated.

The other Professors looked towards Professor Snape and received a raised eyebrow in reply before sighing.

"Very well then. Potter 5 points taken for acting like you're better than everyone else." He paused at the snarls of outrage from the other houses. "Take 30 for not discriminating against the houses." He added the last part in a whisper but the other Heads heard and were quite pleased at the reasoning.

"Now cancel the spells and let them go. I think they've learnt their lesson."

"Yes sir." Harry summoned his basket and kicked it open before jabbing and pulling his wand back. The wool was first, spinning the students around where they hovered before rolling themselves back into balls and dropping the students and streaming towards Harry who guided them back into place as they shrunk as they entered the basket. The streamers followed and with one last check to make sure everything was in order, he tapped a rune of organizing woven into the basket so that everything fixed itself.

The events that followed the unforgettable flying lesson earned him an addition to his Hogwarts nickname that he whined about at dinner to his girls… wait what? Ah well, he'd figure it out later… about how by the time he finished Hogwarts he would have a page long nickname.

"Prince Potter the Protector"

* * *

Hushed whispers followed him everywhere he went now. He did not enjoy it. At all.

He decided to make his escape and head to the library where he sat at a table across from Granger who had seemed more and more depressed as the weeks went by. Homesickness he determined. Maybe there was something he could do about that.

He pulsed to find out what she was reading and went off to find the proper contradicting resource and slowly copied the information on to a separate piece of parchment, sent it flying as a paper plane and sat back to watch the righteous crusade as she went to prove herself correct.

But that didn't happen. Instead she broke into tears before wadding up the parchment and throwing it away. Harry was panicking about what to do since he hadn't meant to make her cry and decided to face up to his actions head on. Rather Gryffindorish of him actually.

"Granger." He whispered as he carried his things over to her table and sat down opposite her. "Are you alright? I'm sorry if I made you cry but I find it endearing watching you storm all over the library to disprove the information I send you. Also with moving your things slightly. I know how you like to have everything perfect."

Red-rimmed honey gold eyes looked up into his own and she sniffled. She quickly wiped her eyes on her sleeve before hesitantly reaching out for the silk handkerchief that he was offering her and recognizing it for what it was. She gave a shaky smile before taking it from his hands and blowing her nose.

"It's alright, your highness." She managed to giggle out. "It wasn't your fault. I enjoyed your challenges and it was always amusing trying to figure out what had been moved and what hadn't even if I never found out what it was. It's just being away from my parents for so long and the environment inside Gryffindor is terrible. The older years don't care and Weasley thinks he's the Prince and makes him think he can get away with whatever he wants. I guess I'm just starting to doubt whether I belong here or not."

"Wipe your tears Granger. You get the honour of being the first person personally inducted into the Guard." Harry managed to bark out like a drill sergeant. "Grab your things and I'll escort you back to your common room and I'll get the others to introduce you." With that he offered his arm and she smiled, accepted and led him along the staircases up to the 7th floor and the Gryffindor Common Room.

Harry covered his ears as he indicated for Hermione to state the password and removed his hands when the Portrait swung open revealing a loud, gaudy but exceptionally cosy room of squashy armchairs and a roaring fire. He took a deep breath before bellowing into the Common Room.

"GUARD ASSEMBLE!"

The 5th, 6th and 7th year Gryffindors involved all bolted outside before saluting at Harry and looking at Hermione with interest.

"Take care of the newest member of the Guard please. She is going to go far if she's given a chance." Harry asked with a smile.

The others acknowledged with salutes but the 7th year hesitated.

"Erm Prince Pott… Harry. I know that this started off as a joke and I'm happy to be included but I just don't think I'll have enough time to continue with it. The homework is really piling up and I just can't balance everything. I hope you understand." The 7th year blurted out, nervous for a reason Harry had no inkling of.

"You're breaking off from a group that doesn't actually exist. It almost sounds like you're breaking up with me." Harry stared up at the 7th year female with wide green eyes who was visibly breaking as she took in the sight before gathering herself and turning away.

"I'm sorry Harry but I just can't. We can still be friends though right?" she asked hopefully, genuinely enjoying the time she spent with Harry and the others of the Guard and it would be a shame if she couldn't sit with them anymore because she had to focus on her studies.

"Of course we can Guardswoman. This humble Prince thanks you for your time." He smiled warmly at her and gave her a fierce hug which was the final point where she broke down into tears and hugging him just as fiercely.

Harry steps back and salutes the girl once more.

"You are hereby relieved of duty. We thank you for your services. When you have time please advise Guardswoman Granger on her duties."

As the Gryffindors filed back through their Portrait Hole, Harry started walking away and started thinking about a symbol for the Guard, since everyone seemed to think it was a legitimate group.

Armbands he figured, he could make those easily enough, with stripes as the identification and the use of house colours to indicate which house they were in. He would have a black one with yellow stripes to symbolise that he was the leader, while the other founding members of the group would receive house colours with a silver edging to show that they were there in the beginning. Harry decided that an eye-gouging purple would be used to show off his closest friends Susan, Hannah, now Hermione and Neville as he could speak to him and return his rememberall. Harry was starting to enjoy the idea of the Guard but made a reminder to himself and to inform everyone that should he ever be cocky those with purple armbands can beat him until he stops.


	6. Chapter 6

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 6

Harry woke up on October 31st and groaned as he pulled himself out of bed. Once he had gotten the idea of armbands for his Guard in his head his fingers itched until he finished it which meant a few sleepless nights embroidering leather so that each of them bore a stylized G with the house animals holding them up while the ones he made for Susan, Hannah, Hermione and Neville were made in the same style except with a C. He had finished the last of them late last night so he had collapsed into bed with the intention of mailing them off early.

He changed into his uniform before donning his robes and embroidered cloak and exiting his room and dorm with the box with smaller boxes secured under his arm. He made his way up to the Owlery, tightening his cloak over his frame and setting it to second level heating setting, causing him to sigh in relief as he forged through the early morning wind.

It had only been after he had called down the dozen birds before he realized his dilemma. He didn't actually know their names except for his council. As he tried to think of a way to be able to tell the owls who they were supposed to deliver them to he remembered Hagrid telling him about the post owls.

" _Smart birds, owls are. They can find anyone as long they have a trace of magic, either themselves or someone close to them._ " So Harry brought up every sample of magic he had of his Guard and offered each one a separate magic. The owls nodded in understanding when asked if they could deliver them without a name and he gave them each an owl treat as thanks in advance.

He then coaxed down Hedwig onto his shoulder and left for the Great Hall to begin breakfast. He wanted a front row view of everyone receiving their armbands and hopefully catch up on his reading since his homework was always up to date.

Harry finished his food and was feeding Hedwig bacon he had cut up into smaller chunks when the last of the students entered and the post owls descended in a flurry of wings. The owls he bribed into helping were among the last and landed neatly at the same time before each of said students and offered their legs to allow them to remove the packages. He then told Hedwig that he would see her later and stood up to go to class.

When he reached the doors and turned around he saw each of his guard stand and salute him with their new armbands on their right arm. He returned the salute and laughed as he left and went up the stairs to continue his debate on transfiguration with Professor McGonagall.

The rest of the day passed with nothing major occurring until he had charms with the Gryffindors. At the end of the lesson he saw Hermione storm past with tears running down her face and looked around and saw Weasley with a nasty grin standing with Thomas and Finnigan flanking him and Brown and Perks on each arm, matching expressions on their faces.

His expression turned icy and sent out a pulse for Hermione's armband that he had given her and Neville earlier that lesson. Susan and Hannah had theirs sitting beside their bedside table courtesy of the house elves that he met in the kitchen. Figuring he would leave her alone until after dinner he set off to the library where he spent the next few hours reading about the history of magical wearings and how to make magical tapestries that would move and communicate with the world.

He frowned when he noticed that she was still in the bathroom and when he pulsed a large wave noticed that there was a large presence on the 2nd floor outside the bathroom she was in and an even larger one on the third floor.

Harry hurried up the stairs from the kitchen and raced towards the bathroom when he felt Hermione panic through the armband he had given her. He conveniently forgot to mention that he spelled the armbands with monitoring spells and location runes so that he would be able to help his Guard if they ever found themselves in trouble.

When he heard her scream his focus became highly acute and he threw himself into battle. Throwing piercing charmed needles and enlarging them with a wave of his wand they crashed into the troll's leg, causing it to bellow out in pain. It turned towards him, its small brain pointing out him as the main threat and it charged at him.

Harry threw himself back and placed a few squares of linen on the floor and raced away even more. When its presence hit the squares he begged, no he willed for it to turn to ice and attach itself to the trolls feet, making it hard for it to even stand and his magic obeyed in a surge of power.

Turning to face it once more, he saw that it was on its hands and knees, furiously trying to make its way to squish the bug that caused him so much pain. He pulled out a small ball of yellow wool, unraveled it and threw it, palm facing down and flicked his entire hand forward, imagining a bolt of lightning flying from his palm. The wool flew true and when it struck the troll there was a gong of sound and a roar of an explosion blowing him back onto his back and down the corridor.

He let out a sigh of relief when he looked at the troll and saw that it stopped moving and relaxed onto the ground with an oomph. Tilting his head back he looked down the stairs and saw the teachers racing towards him in worry, Professor Sprout at the forefront. He supposed he looked quite the site. His clothes were mostly intact and only his face was singed as it was the only bit not covered by rune protected clothing. He also had the audacity to wave with one eyebrow missing as they slowed when they noticed he was fine.

"I found a troll wandering around and blasted it!" He had the nerve to call out cheerfully. The teachers looked down the hall to the bathroom where Hermione was standing bright eyed at the destruction caused by Harry. The corridor was littered with half destroyed tapestries and armor with the evidence of Harry's fight against the troll being a few spear-like needles, 2 linen patches and an innocent ball of yellow wool.

The teachers were speechless. Never before had they ever seen anything like what lay before them. That a first year managed to defeat a troll with some sewing items was flabbergasting. That the only injury he received was a scorched eyebrow from the release of a seemingly lightning based spell was infuriating. The staff were proud of his actions and any notion of him being like the young Tom Riddle Jr that the Headmaster had slowly been spreading vanished without a trace. Harry was warm while Tom was not. Harry cared when Tom didn't. Harry stood up for everyone whereas Tom encouraged segregation. No Harry would never go dark because he was willing to fight for everyone while Tom fought for himself.

"Idiot boy. You are coming to the Hospital Wing right now and I don't care if I have to drag you kicking and screaming. You too Miss Granger." The feared Madam Pomfrey noticed the girl dazedly walking over and went to examine her. "Mild case of shock. Should be fine with some bed rest." With that said she grabbed Hermione by the hand, flicked her wand at Harry to levitate him up and away and set off for the Hospital Wing. Harry playfully resisted and insisted that he was fine and that he really didn't need to go but Pomfrey was determined.

"GUARD! GUARD! I'M BEING KIDNAPPED. SOMEONE SAVE ME!" He shouted into the crowd but the crowd merely laughed at him as those chosen to wear the armbands were doubled over with laughter and not at all helpful. Susan and Hannah, the last bastion that he could turn to merely waved and shouted they would bring him some dessert.

"TRAITORS!" Harry shouted before being whacked quiet by the matron. He spent the rest of the trip pouting and sending some wool to poke Hermione in the back of her head as he floated along.

"You awake? How are you feeling?" He asked her, concern clouding his voice.

"I'll be fine. Thank you for rescuing me. Are you OK? You didn't get hurt rescuing me did you?" Hermione answered back, wide eyed and shaking.

"I'm fine" He cheerfully replied "Just hanging around so to speak." The resulting grin and moan at bad humor did wonders on their nerves and they dissolved into laughter as the Matron guided Hermione to one bed, dropped Harry none to gently on the other and insisted that they get some rest.

"Yes ma'am!" They called out and saluted leaving Pomfrey to walk away shaking her head and muttering about children and finding humor in serious situations.

Harry spent the next few weeks contemplating and scouting the large presence he discovered on the third floor. He dragged in his Council of first years into the discussion and they reached the point where talking became useless and decided that they would need to have a look to accurately determine what it was.

This led to an overly curious group of 5 first years to meeting up after dinner and walking down the third floor corridor to the door that housed a particularly painful death. They stopped just outside the door and pretended to examine the tapestry hanging next to the door while Harry sent out a focused pulse through the wall in a cone shape. What came back was a large canine shaped figured that had Harry shocked enough that he had to cancel his viewing magic.

"What the #$%" he exclaimed.

"Language!" Scolded the three ladies-to-be in his presence. Harry just rolled his eyes and proceeded to unlock the door with a tracing of an opening rune.

"What are you doing!?" exclaimed Hermione. "I thought you just needed to use magic to see through the wall. That's why we're here in the first place!"

"Yes well I need to see this to actually believe it." With that said Harry activated his stealth runes and actively disappeared from the other's senses. "Wait here. I'll just be a moment. Need to check I'm not going insane."

He slipped in and turned towards the large beast. Yup. He was not insane. What lay before him was a giant three headed dog. A Cerberus. One with traces of Hagrid's magic. Finalizing his hypothesis he slipped out of the room and went back to his friends, applying his combination of locking runes running down the length of the door.

"We're done here. It looks like a Cerberus that's actively guarding something. I noticed a trap door so I presume that it's something important. What the Headmaster is doing placing something that powerful in a school full of children I'll never figure out. Though that explains the danger signs from Quirrell. I'll go down every now and then to check if whatever is meant to be down there is still there."

With that decided the group decided to head back to their dormitories, with 4 of the 5 secretly glad that they didn't have to go down there, knowing that they could trust Harry with this.

The days passed by with trips to the library for homework and the study of Cerberus' and the casual interrogation of Hagrid which yielded a horde of useful information that Harry had no shame in abusing.

The information he discovered included how to get past Hagrid's obstacle in what seemed to be the first in a series of defenses designed to protect said dangerous object that was almost stolen from Gringotts. It was just the next one of many contemplation's on if the Headmaster had lost his wits earlier that year. He also learnt that the 4 heads of houses and Professor Quirrell had designed the other defences.

It was late February when Harry decided he was ready to go down to check if everything was safe. He told Susan and Hannah that he was going and they hugged and wished him good luck and he felt that he could get used to the sensation of them holding each other with a glazed expression on his face. The duo of girls looked at each other, clearly questioning Harry's ability before snapping fingers in front of his face, bringing him back to reality.

"Right, I'm heading off now." With that said he activated his stealth runes and crept out of the House dorm and headed up to the third floor. He crept quietly, not wanting to risk everything by being hasty and careless.

He snuck into the room and listened to the dog's breath flow through the room. He pulled out a flute that Hagrid had given him for Christmas, activating the runes he drew onto it to make sounds. He then moved towards the paw covering the trap door and used generous streamers of magic to lift it and move it over. Easing the door up he jumped in and let the door thump back down, coincidentally waking the dog just as Quirrell stumbled in when he attempted to open the corridor door that remained locked despite his best efforts.

Dropping down into the hole Harry prepared himself to throw a bolt of silk that would cushion his fall when he landed on something soft and stringy. Pausing for a moment to thank Magic that there was something there, he didn't notice that said string started moving up and around his body. He had just decided to shed some light in the dark room and lit up his charm when he dropped further down the hole.

Staring at the retreating plant he just thought that he was really lucky tonight.

'Time's a wasting.' Harry thought to himself as he got up and moved on to the next room. As he moved down what turned out to be a corridor, he heard a gentle rustling, like birds in a tree as they settled down for the night. Pushing open the door at the end he looked around and saw what seemed to be flying keys. He crept along the wall towards the door opposite the one he came in from and took a look at the lock. It seemed quite old, nearly a century from what he could guess so he figured that the key would be just as old. Looking around he noticed one that was flying slower than the others, almost as if it was past its prime.

'Bingo.' Harry thought to himself, pulling out a ball of string and letting it unravel itself. He forewent his wand this time and focused entirely on the loose end of the string and sent it flying up and onward. It snaked through the air as it dodged and weaved around the other keys as they tried to interfere but to no avail when the string slipped through one of the holes on the key handle.

Grinning in triumph he pulled back on the string, reeling it in like a happily caught fish. The key attempted to struggle but it was too weak to effectively break free of the grip Harry had on it. It was only after he had opened the door when he smacked himself and realized that he hadn't tried to open the door by himself. Maybe on the way back he figured.

Seeing a giant chessboard in the room Harry immediately thought to himself 'NOPE! DEFINITELY NOT' and dove back into his mage kit pulling out 4 squares of linen and 4 rolls of bandages. Wrapping the bandages around his hands and feet he made sure they were tight and wouldn't slip before applying double ended sticking charms to the patches of linen as makeshift handholds.

Climbing the wall and moving sideways proved to be slow going but it proved to be a better alternative to what looked like a brutal war of chess. Shimmying down the wall next to the door proved to be quite fun after he made sure he was well away from the pieces as he definitely did not want to be squashed by giant chess pieces made of marble. No sir he did not.

Taking off the linen and bandages he did a mental checklist of everything that he had gone through. Hagrid? Check. Herbology? Check. Charms? Check. Transfiguration? Check. That left Quirrell and Snape which would probably safer to have fabric and his wand out at the beginning for. No use making things harder for himself by not being prepared.

Pulling out a roll of needles, he equipped it on his offhand, securing it to his wand-holster and ran his wand along all the needles preemptively charging them with magic. Going through a last bodycheck he ensured everything was in place before straightening his back and stepping forward, game face on. Not that he had much of one, being 11 and all that. Luckily there was no one else there, he thought before looking around to make sure he was alone.

Approaching the door silently, he sent out his web through the gap in the door to check if it was safe. It was a good thing he did too as close to the doorway was a 15 foot troll sleeping. Harry looked through the key hole and noticed that it was a clear shot if he sent on of his needles. He did a silent jig, thinking that he was the luckiest sod tonight. Manipulating a needle until it was in the hole and adjusting his aim took a considerable amount of effort considering he had to get it right otherwise he would have a rather serious fight that he wanted to avoid on his hands.

Taking in a deep breath he prayed to magic that his aim was true and that it was now or never. With an iron will he shot the needle forward before enlarging it just as it left the keyhole, so that it looked like the door shot a javelin in a way similar to that of a muggle gun or cannon. Harry heard rather than saw the impact as it landed with a meaty thunk like he often heard at the butcher when he was buying food for the Dursleys.

He turned green for a moment and looked away, silently apologising to the troll for causing its death even if it was just doing its job but Harry took his safety rather seriously as he had friends that he had to get back to. Susan and her red pigtails. Hannah and her dry wit. Hermione with her incredible brain capacity. Neville and his green thumbs. The rest of the Guard who had no idea he was down here. Kind people who played along with the joke that he started and helped to break down house barriers.

He wanted and needed to be there to see the efforts they had cultivated together impact the next few years as students and by magic he would.

He opened the door and strode past, silently offering a prayer for the troll's soul but otherwise not stopping at all. He soon noticed a table with 7 bottles and a riddle sitting on top while fire sprung up around him, blue ahead and black behind.

He read the riddle and wished that someone, anyone else was here so they could work it out for him but it was not meant to be. So he sat down and read the riddle again. Once. Twice. A third time. He made it halfway through the 4th before he scrunched it up and threw it away and watched as it paused in mid-air and returned to bounce off his head and back to the table.

Muttering angrily about cheeky riddles he decided to cheat and charmed 7 of his needles with detection spells before dipping each one into a separate bottle. One by one the bottles glowed red as they indicated that there was poison in each bottle until the smallest one glowed green.

Putting that bottle to his lips, he raised his eyes to the ceiling in a silent toast and downed the bottle and charging ahead through the flames. When he stopped he noticed a giant blanket covering something that stood upright and next to it was a blood red stone on a pedestal. Looking at the stone in disbelief, he couldn't believe that he went through all that effort for a rock. Quite angry now he swiped the stone and placed it into a pouch that he had made for things that he wanted to hide from others.

He stormed back through the other hurdles, collecting all of his materials so that there was no evidence, he could hardly call them defences now that they've failed and when he made it to the Herbology hurdle, pulled out a bolt of cloth and turned it into an impromptu flying carpet and flew up the hole before banging open the trap door and landing on his feet, rewinding the bolt of cloth as he did so.

When the Cerberus growled at him, he growled back and sent out a wave of magic to overwhelm the canine's senses as he moved away. Making sure his stealth runes were still up he crept down to the Entrance Hall and then to the Lake. Charming the inside of the pouch to be waterproof and marking it with tracking runes so that he could call it back if he ever needed to, he pitched it out into the lake, taking immense pleasure as he watched the pouch sink to the depths of the lake.

He then made his way into the Hufflepuff common room and crashed into his room, barely making it to his bed and not bothering to change out of his robes, not knowing that this would cause quite a stir the next morning.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 7

Harry awoke from a deep slumber after lunch, not knowing that he had not deactivated his stealth runes. He walked up and out of the dormitory wondering why it was so quiet and figured he'd check the Great Hall to see if there was any food available.

What he walked into was anarchy. Absolute anarchy that the professors were struggling to contain. Professor Sprout seemed hysterical and was ripping into Dumbledore like he was a bone. The other Hufflepuffs were up in arms and facing down both Slytherin and Gryffindor while Ravenclaw tried to play mediator, quite unsuccessfully as well.

Walking up to a prefect he pulled down his hood and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Any idea what's going on?" With only his head appearing it was no wonder that the prefect leapt a foot into the air and gave off a shriek that pierced through the chaos and turned heads. Looking around and noticing everyone staring he asked what the issue was, and prepared himself to help in anyway.

Before he could do anything he felt two bodies slam into him while he was inattentive.

"HARRY!" Shouted both Susan and Hannah as they tackled him to the floor. "Where have you been? We woke up and couldn't find you and then when we went to class Malfoy and Weasley were talking about how you were probably wandering around and got stuck in an abandoned classroom and that no one would find you and when you would be found you would be shriveled up and skin and bones…."

Most of the blubbering came from Hannah as she turned off her brain to mouth filter and kept going into more and more morose things. Susan on the other hand just clutched at him like he was going to disappear and appeared shaken to the core.

Giving a wave to Professor Sprout, catching her attention he turned back to the girls before informing them of his past few hours.

"Yeah I was walking around the castle but only because I couldn't sleep. Found an old corridor as well and went to explore. Don't worry I left tracks so that I could find my way back. Then I went back to the dorm and got into bed. Must have forgotten to deactivate my cloak. I should do that now shouldn't I…"

As he explained himself he slowly reabsorbed the magic he placed in the runes, bringing his body back into visibility and going to sit down to grab some food.

"You were asleep… The whole time… In your bed…" Sensing danger, Harry grabbed a stack of sandwiches and wrapped them up in a lengthy handkerchief that he extended before bolting away, out onto the lake and away from the girls who were out to cause him pain. He managed to make it to the lakeside and spread out a blanket he pulled from his workbasket before unraveling the sandwiches and setting them out for everyone.

By the time they reached him, all of his Council was there and waiting for the explanation.

"So yesterday I got bored and went to the third floor corridor and decided I'd do the gauntlet to see if I could get to it first before whatever evil is lurking around tries. I was successful but honestly I don't think it was worth it. It was just a stone. I was so angry about it that I put it into a pouch and threw it into the lake." Harry bluntly stated, still feeling a bit miffed about the whole thing. It was nothing compared to the looks of mortification and horror encroaching on Neville and Hermione's faces.

"What…. What is it?" The Hufflepuffs just looked on as the Gryffindors debated into furious whispers.

"Well Harry." Hermione drew out her sentence looking distinctly uncomfortable. "Did this stone happen to be red in color? And about the size of your fist."

"It might have been… Why do you ask?"

"Well Neville and I have been doing some research into who Nicholas Flamel was and we may have discovered that Flamel made the Philosopher's Stone…"

Everyone present turned pale at the implication. It was even worse for Harry who choked on the sandwich that he had just taken a bite of.

"Are you telling me that I threw the Philosopher's Stone into the lake!? Oh Merlin."

Harry immediately stood up and walked down to the lake where he sent a pulse as strong as he could out and into the lake hoping to find the pouch that he had chucked into the depths. He found it. He definitely found it, except that it just so happened to be in the middle of the Giant Squid who seemed to have eaten the pouch.

It was at this point that Harry fainted, his brain couldn't stand the fact that he had thrown something that powerful and it was eaten like a snack. The others hurried forward to catch him and set him gently on the ground.

"I'm sure that he's just overreacting. It's not like he can't retrieve it…" Susan hoped that he was just exaggerating his response and that he would be able to summon it after he wakes up. The others were not as confident. Making the executive decision, Hermione grabbed a bottle of water and decided to pour it all over Harry.

Jerking up, sputtering from the water that managed to make its way into his mouth Harry came back to the severity of the situation.

"I need to go send a letter. Like right now. Does anyone have any parchment on them?"

Hermione pulled out a spare sheet and a quill, while Neville provided the ink and they watched Harry as he scribbled out a hasty note.

" _Dear Mr Flamel, it has come to my attention that you lent Albus Dumbledore something of extreme importance to you this year. He had not mentioned a word about what it was, merely that the students should stay away from the Third Floor Corridor, which naturally meant that the students took it as a challenge. I, myself am one of those students and after months of information gathering I decided to attempt to retrieve whatever was at the end of the corridor. Unfortunately, my information gathering did not include what the item could possibly be so in disappointment at finding a rock, I put said rock into a waterproof pouch and threw it into the lake. In an extreme bout of coincidence, said rock is now located within the giant squid currently situated in the Black Lake of Hogwarts. It is with my sincerest apologies that I decided to inform you about the fate of your Stone._

 _Sincerely apologetic, Harry Potter."_

Just as Harry finished the letter, Hedwig came swooping down and landed on Susan's shoulder and stuck out her leg. Tying the letter around her leg and lavishing her with praise, Harry told Hedwig that it needed to get to Nicholas Flamel as fast as she could. Hooting in understanding, she took off and away into the afternoon sun.

"So what's for dinner do you think?" Harry asked nonchalantly as if he hadn't possibly made an enormous decision that backfired on him. He helped the others to their feet and soon packed up the blanket, snapping his fingers and letting the magic in the blanket pulse and letting all the stains and crumbs slide off.

The others merely looked at him like he was insane and walked away as one, shaking their heads as they did. Harry mock pouted all the way back into the Great Hall where everyone was writing lines. Peeking over the shoulder of one the students he read what they were meant to be writing.

'I will not falsely accuse others and overreact.'

'I will behave in an honorable fashion.'

'I will not cause chaos wherever I go.'

Discreetly checking the identity of said student Harry figured that the last one would be most accurate seeing as it was one of the Weasley twins he was peeking over. Said twin looked up and winked when he saw Harry looking at him.

"Right then, kitchen it is." Harry declared to his group before hurrying away before he was sucked into the black hole of writing lines.

* * *

After the day of chaos, Harry and his friends spent their time studying and preparing for their final exams, most of it at Hermione's insistence. He knew that he was near the top of the year with his magical theory thanks to his delving into the magical theory section of the library but for some reason the practical portion was more difficult for him. Maybe it had something to do with the way his magic came forth.

Harry stood up and walked off with a glazed expression, the others seeing it and knowing that they wouldn't have to worry since whenever he got that like that he was nearing a breakthrough with his magic. He made his into an unused classroom and sat down on the floor, pulling out a bolt of silk and using it as a blanket before delving into his mind.

He looked at his mindscape and saw a giant ball of glowing wool that Harry figured was his magical core. He sat there in a meditative pose for hours, his friends coming and going as they checked in on him to make sure he didn't disappear on them. Again. Inside his mindscape, he was busy unraveling his magic and checking each of his outward threads, pulling back any that were unnecessary at the moment, leaving only the threads for the tracking and security magic.

Harry took a deep breath as he came out of his meditation and got up and checked the time. Seeing that it was well past the time they had agreed to meet, he decided that he would go down to dinner where they should all be. Unknown to Harry, his magic was rolling off him in waves, spreading out a meter, never more, cocooning him in its safety.

Everyone else noticed as they felt an enormous pressure approaching, but that it wasn't harmful, just there. The doors burst open and in walked the Prince himself, eyes glowing and cloak flowing in an imaginary wind as he made his way down the table to sit with Susan and Hannah. Both girls were gobsmacked at the amount of magic that he held and tried to bring it to his attention but merely opened and closed their mouths like fish.

Professor Sprout made her way down from the Head Table to where Harry was sitting with an awed expression on her face.

"Mr Potter. If you could please reign in your magic that would be wonderful, but I must ask, you haven't been undergoing any power increasing rituals have you?"

"Rituals professor?" His voice was deep and calming, like the sound of a loom as it was used, with the rustling of fabric adding a gentle lilt to his voice. "No I haven't. I merely unraveled it to sort it out, but if it's disturbing everyone I can try to control it to some extent. I was just going to eat first but I'll try to do a bit before I do."

With another deep breathe he entered a trance once more and looked at his magic, which looked like a large moat with his threads of magic running as a river, waiting to be sent out in trickles and streams for whatever is needed. He grabbed his magic at one point and started to wind it up and around the large tower of his castle acting as his conduit. Around and around he wove his magic, making sure that it remained neat.

To aid with his organizing he installed platforms to the tower so that it alternated moving from one platform to another in alternating entrances. By the time he was done his magic spiraled up from the moat and then up and out from the base until it reached the edge before rising upwards onto the next level and winding back in before snaking up the center of the tower to repeat the process.

By the time he was done he had a surprising amount of 10 layers with his active magic radiating out from the point of the tower to give an impression of a dome.

He exited his mindscape once more to find that most of the students were gone with only his Council, Guard and the Professors, the former as the ones who had the most contact with his magic thanks to the armbands, and the latter with their ability to sense magic from the experiences and knowledge that they own.

"Where did everyone go? Why am I so hungry all of a sudden?" He looked around with wide, doe eyes looking like the child that he rarely acted like. His stomach growling merely accented the fact. When he looked at the Professors, more than one called for a house elf which caused laughter to erupt from many of them. When they managed to sort out who was going to get what, Harry had a large platter of sandwiches in front of him which he devoured to everyone's amazement, each secretly wondering where it all went.

"You definitely sorted out your magic. After you entered your mindscape, the air went still before moving away as if something was pulling it. I'm assuming that was when you started. Now I'm just going to give you a scan to make sure everything is fine, is that alright Mr Potter?"

"Yes Madam Pomfrey." Harry replied, cowering away from the stern gaze that she was giving him.

"Honestly. What on earth gave you the idea to play with your magic! It's not a toy you know!"

"I'm well aware of that Madam Pomfrey. I was trying to figure out a way to help with my practical wand casting. It seems sluggish but I think that's just my approach to magic. Neatening it should help but we'll just have to see. Not today though. I'm going to go to bed. Hopefully you can find me tomorrow." Harry teased as Pomfrey finished her scan and shooed him away.

"Goodnight everyone." He called out before wobbling on his feet. Susan and Hannah each took an arm around their shoulder and helped him away while everyone else wished him a good night while breaking away into groups in chatter about what they had just seen.

The Professors in particular were awestruck. An 11 year old had such an understanding of his magic that he could 'neaten it.' All present knew that he would do great things and were content to wait as he trail-blazed through the world, although more than one present were thankful that both Albus were out of the school. It would not do for Albus to manipulate such a pure presence for his own nefarious deeds.

* * *

The days passed once more and Harry's time became routine once more, breakfast, classes, lunch, classes, library, dinner and bed. Rinse and Repeat. Thanks to his breakthrough with his magic, Harry was now in the top 5 of the students in his year, but there was a clear divide between him and 4th place, one Daphne Greengrass, simply because trying to get his magic to flow through his wand was exceptionally difficult for only wand magic. If he used it to conduct his own magic it flowed even better than without it but for the exams he had no way to manipulate it in such a way and so he struggled.

Two months before the exams saw the Council sitting with Harry during breakfast, laughing and teasing Hermione about her obsession with hitting the library whenever she had time when Hedwig came soaring down and landing daintily in front of Harry looking immensely smug and holding out her leg.

Harry's heart soared at the return of his familiar for he had missed her dearly. He removed the letter and set it on his lap, attaching it to his self with magic, since it was bound to be important considering who he sent it so.

Weasley had been walking past when Harry removed the letter and tried to snatch it but ended up draped over Harry's shoulder when the letter refused to be moved.

"Kindly remove your hand before I remove it for you Weasley. I am still quite angry for what you and the rest of your 'gang' said to Hermione on Halloween and I have a long memory. I have no idea why you thought it would be appropriate to steal my letter but then again, I'm surprised you can think at all, also SEXUAL HARASSMENT!"

Everyone looked over and saw the awkward position that he was in, trapped against the table with Ronald draped over his shoulder and hand resting on his lap. A lot of students leapt up and were going to rush to his defense when Professor Sprout appeared like a flash to where Harry was sitting and tore into him like she was his own personal apocalypse.

"WHAT ON EARTH DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING MR WEASLEY? THIS BEHAVIOUR IS UTTERLY DESPICABLE NEVER MIND HOW YOUNG YOU ARE! HOW DARE YOU THINK THAT IT IS ALRIGHT TO BEHAVE IN SUCH A MANNER! I HAVE HALF A MIND TO WRITE TO YOUR MOTHER AND TELL HER WHAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO!"

Ronald's attempts to explain himself went unheard of as he turned into a gibbering mess and stumbling over his words. He turned to his house for help but even they were looking slightly green at what it looked like he was trying to do. He even turned to the Twins for help but they were laughing their heads off, knowing a prank when they see one.

"MR WEASLEY, DETENTION, MY OFFICE AT 7! I am so disgusted at the behaviour of one of my lions right now I can barely think straight." McGonagall had descended upon the poor boy as well and dragged him away, forcing him to sit down well away from Harry and next to his brother Percy who was coincidentally a member of the Potter Guard and was quite livid.

Hiding a smirk Harry looked down at his letter and opened it, casually casting a privacy barrier with a vague wave of his hand before reading the reply from Nicholas Flamel, famed Alchemist.

" _Dear apologetic Mr Potter,_

 _I have decided to write to you to compliment you on your owl as she is quite intelligent, being able to get past our wards. It is with my sincerest pleasure to inform you that the stone that you threw into the lake was not in fact the real one and was merely a fake to appease Dumbledore, who thinks it is the real one, like I would give the real one away for any instance. Furthermore, your story was so amusing that my wife and I laughed ourselves silly for an hour and even now we still giggle over it every hour or so. That would be a hilariously amusing way to lose the stone. Loss via giant squid HA! We must have gained at least another decade of natural life from the laughter alone. In conclusion, your worries about our health are greatly appreciated but are unfounded. My wife and I wish you all the best and give you our permission to write whenever you wish._

 _Still amused, Mr and Mrs Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel."_

Harry looked up from his letter with his relief radiating off of him, his smile telling everyone that there was good news. When asked by his guard he told them he would inform them after breakfast and if someone else asked him he would merely reply that he had permission to write to the Flamels. The shock and awe on everyone's faces was delightful as he cackled away in amusement. Yes, life was going well for Harry at that moment and he wouldn't trade it for anything.


	8. Chapter 8

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 8

The days and time in the library came harder and faster as the days elapsed and the final exams came closer and closer. Harry and his friends spent more and more time secluded in the library around a corner table that was out of immediate site from the door but where they could see everyone as they walk in.

Poor Ronald had taken a few steps back from trying to assert his presence over Harry after the vicious howler that came from his mother, mentally scarring himself and shocking the others when the howler turned on the other Weasley siblings and praising them for behaving in a way that made their parents proud, even the twins.

While having one idiot, and thus his cronies, back off came as a relief to the group it didn't do anything to the other pain on the opposite end of the spectrum. Draco was strutting around everywhere like a cocky peacock and generally being a nuisance to every student, thinking he would be able to be at the top of his classes without even studying. This didn't endear him to any of the students, especially when he wasn't even in the top 5. No, that honour went to Hermione, Susan, Padma Patil, Daphne Greengrass and Harry, in that order.

The competition was as fierce as it was friendly as there was barely any difference in their scores, with only 1 or 2 marks separating them all. The ranks had changed quite frequently and the 4 could be seen sending cutting remarks to each other whenever they were in sight of each other when they received tests back.

Harry had to admit that the girl's reactions were quite amusing. Hermione was fiery and excited like a flame, her thirst for knowledge a burning desire in her eyes. Susan was collected and stubborn, insisting that the scores would be reversed, like a boulder set in its path. Padma was airy and unflappable, able to shrug off the remarks and replying that she would come out on top and that she didn't have to worry. Daphne was calm and flowing, acknowledging her mistakes and seeing them as things to correct.

Neville had once interjected in a Herbology debate between the 4 girls, correcting a fact absentmindedly as they were all debating about a wrong fact and all 4 of them snapped at him, the poor bloke. Harry ended up having to comfort him and convince him that he was doing fine as a student and that he shouldn't listen to overly academic people as they just weren't similar. They were practical people and should thus show them up during them. He said all this with a pointed glare at the girls and they had the grace to look sheepish and moved in to comfort him when Harry stepped away.

* * *

Harry had taken to trying to sense Quirrell whenever he had time and he noticed that the dark presence that had been around his head had become larger and was pulsing more and more often. Discreetly wrapping a tracking charm into the weaves of the turban Harry decided to prepare himself by bringing along two bracers of needles and pins, one on each arm and secured an expanded pouch containing 3 balls of 4 different colored wool that he associated with different elements.

It was during dinner on the final day of the exams and Harry was relaxing with Susan and Hannah, practically jelly from the grueling experience that was the final exams, resting his head on the table and sipping soup from a very large straw when Dumbledore announced that he would be unavailable that night due to pressing issues in London.

Harry raised his head and looked at the teachers expressions and focused on Quirrell. His magic was pulsing wildly and he knew that he would attempt to retrieve the false, now missing stone. He contemplated just leaving him alone but the Gryffindor inside of him insisted that he needed to confront him, just so that the risk of another student trying tonight would not have to face him.

Steeling his resolve and looked at Susan and Hannah in fondness. Both noticed his change and were alarmed as if he was preparing himself for battle. He then looked over at Neville and Hermione and smiled at them gently, to which they beamed back at him, not knowing what he was planning to do.

"Harry, what do you plan on doing? Why are you looking at us like you won't be coming back?" Susan was quietly hysterical, knowing he would not want attention drawn to him at this moment.

"I am doing what I must. Quirrell has lost his mind and he must be stopped. No matter what."

"But why you. Let's go to the teachers, surely they could do something right?"

"I'm getting the feeling that it must be me. Like I'm being drawn into a confrontation, like there'll be answers waiting for me and if I miss them I'll regret it for years." His eyes were blazing, his magic gently fluttering around him as he spoke, belying his confidence. "If anything else, I have a larger chance than most in surviving. I am the Boy-Who-Lived after all, Dark Lords mean nothing to me." He added teasingly, trying to lighten the mood.

He then stood up and activated his stealth magic and made his way up to the third floor corridor to get ahead of Quirrell and set up his traps. He left pins in each room as a way to link his web, in the furthest corner with stealth runes attached to hide their presence. He was taking no chances in what would probably be a fight to the death, if his reasoning was correct.

He left the Cerberus room with only the webbing charm, freezing charms along the Herbology plants, making it harder for them to burn and wand magic suppression charms in the key room. He left the giant chess set alone and scaled the walls again and snuck past the troll, leaving it to face Quirrell instead. He stuck the riddle to the underside of the table with a patch of linen and made his way into the final room where the pedestal had been removed and only the mirror remained.

He avoided looking at the mirror and started releasing his magic, setting up a razor thin magic wire zone just in front of the door. He then made his way around the room, leaving unwoven balls of wool that he could manipulate from anywhere in the room, loosened his needles and pins and settled himself in the corner with a stack of linen and silk before infusing them with shield and reflection magic. By the time he felt Quirrell enter the third floor corridor he had a stack of 50 for each spell.

Room by room he drew closer until he halted just before the door. 'He must be wary by now' mused Harry, letting his magic flow through his body preparing himself for a fight. Then without a pause the door exploded past and was shredded by the magical wire he had set up. The surprise was visible on Quirrell's face as he expected something but being torn to shreds was not part of his list.

Harry watched and waited as he tried to get past the wire without damaging himself. He eventually resorted to climbing through the pathway that Harry had graciously allowed to be present, it wouldn't do to not get his answers after coming all the way down here. He was thankful that he had sorted through all the dream memories he had of Lark and Sandry in mage fights and adapted their own techniques into his, allowing him to even the playing field as he knew he wasn't up to fighting back with wand magic.

Quirrell stalked up to the mirror, evidently annoyed at the effort he had to put into merely getting to the room and immediately headed to the mirror, as if it would hold the answer, which it probably would have, had Harry not gotten to it months ago.

"Master, is the stone in the mirror? How do I get it out? Damn Dumbledore and his infuriating need for tests." He would have continued ranting if Harry hadn't interrupted.

"Good evening Professor. Fancy seeing you here."

"POTTER! Not surprised to see me? Surely you expected Severus to be the one after the stone, he does seem like the type does he not?"

"Oh no Professor. I knew that he was innocent all along, for you see I can sense magic to an extent and yours is pure evil. I guess it has something to do with the evil spirit on the back of your head."

The banter had occurred while neither stopped their actions, Quirrell examining the mirror looking for some sort of hint while dismissing Harry as a non-threat, whereas Harry just stood against the wall watching.

"Use…. The boy…" A raspy voice came from the back of Quirrell's head that would have intimidated anyone else, but Harry had lived through natural disasters and stood firm in his beliefs and morals.

"I don't think so. I've known about the stone for months now and I removed it long before now. No, you have answers that I need and I'll be getting them one way or another." Harry's voice hardened as he said this and released his magic, about 3 platforms worth to saturate the room in his magic.

"Now, am I correct in assuming that you are Voldemort? It's quite a silly name don't you think. What did you do? Rearrange the letters in your name to get that?" Harry snorted at the thought but stopped dead when the raspy voice spat out.

"KILL HIM! KILL HIM NOW!"

"Oh wow. You actually did, didn't you? HA! How pathetic, can't even come up with an evil name without rearranging letters." Even as he taunted Quirrellmort he had enlarged two of his needles and held them like swords, thankful that he had thought of practicing even a little when he was still discovering what he could do with his magic. He ran his magic through the eyes of the needles and threw himself out of the way as Quirrellmort charged at him.

He threw one javelin style and watched as it pierced through the shield that Quirrellmort had tried to raise before stabbing the other into the ground. He pulled out two more and repeated his earlier actions as he used one like a large wand, flicking up some of his protective and reflective linen up to act as some resistance to the quite deadly spells that his enemy was now flinging like candy.

Waiting for the correct opening he threw himself away and to another side so that the basis of a square was coming out of his needles. Linking all of his needles with his magic he set up the square and connected them, raising up a barrier before throwing one more javeneedle into the ceiling forming a pyramid with Quirrell and the mirror at the centre.

"Now this is the bit where I get my answers." Harry stated, quite angry. His protection spelled clothing was damaged and ripped to the extent that he would need to scrap them and make them anew. This cost time and money and he was not a happy person.

"Why did you attack me when I was a baby?"

"What? Has Dumbledore not told his Boy-Who-Lived anything? Pathetic! Join me Potter, together we can rule Britain and the world beyond that."

"No thank you, now answer my question!" He demanded, registering the pulse that said that teachers were coming down.

"There was a prophecy…" was all he managed be he found a way to blow apart the pyramid barrier that was holding him. This began an entirely new level of magical combat than earlier where they were testing the waters. Dark curses were homing in to Harry at speeds unknown to Harry who only managed to keep up by sensing the magic in the air. This was his workroom and here he controlled everything. Moving side to side he weaved between the spells he could while twirling the spells he couldn't and directing them away.

Flicking his hands he sent needles with strands of wool attached to the eyes flying towards the ground around both him and Quirrellmort. Green threads raised up large boulders while red and yellow threads threw bolts of fire and lighting at Quirrellmort. Yellow and lilac pins flew like missiles, shocking and freezing whatever they could.

Back and forth magic flew, scorching the floor and walls with fire, lightning and ice and tearing up the floor with rocks and lava from one acutely dangerous spell that hit one of Harry's boulders. Snatching up his connection to the magic wire he directed it to wrap around Quirrellmort and try to eviscerate him, pulling out all the tricks in his hat when he felt the teachers burst through the door and rain spell-fire down on his opponent.

He had been fighting Quirrellmort for atleast half an hour and he was down to merely one platform of magic compared to earlier when he was running on a full tank. He collapsed to the floor and sat there panting, deactivating the stealth runes all around the corridor and his person and shocked the Professors who finally noticed him.

"Harry, my boy, what on earth are you doing down here?"

"Please, as if you don't know the reason I'm down here. This is all part of your grand scheme to wrap me around your finger isn't it? Well I'm not buying it. I don't know where you get off thinking you can act so familiarly with me but it ends now got it? I am only saying this once. It's Mr Potter to you and don't you forget it."

He felt a probe of magic attempt to attach itself to him so he took hold of it and threw it back to Dumbledore, not caring what it did. When he saw snippets of how and what he thought he knew that Dumbledore was now an enemy.

"Do that again and I'll rip your beard off and make you eat it! Now stay out of my head!" He snarled at Dumbledore. "Professor Sprout, can you help me back to the dorm? I just fought off Voldemort and now I'm tired."

As he tiredly rose from the floor with assistance from Professor McGonagall black smoke started to rise from the prone body of Quirrell and started screaming in a hoarse voice before plunging into Harry making his collapse back to the floor. He started screaming as the shade tried to take over Harry's body but as Harry dove into his mindscape he saw that the shade was trying to merge itself to the huge chunk of stone that was attached to his tower. He hadn't known what it was and thus stood away from it not knowing what could happen, but he put two and two together and realised that he had a piece of Voldemort inside of him for years and that disgusted him to his core. His even deeper core.

He started tearing it away from his tower, calling forth his magic as a long drill that dove deep into the parasite and popped out the other end before turning into a power saw that started shaving it off. This was Harry's mind, body and magic and here he was god. He thought back to what he had said to Susan and Hannah earlier and repeated what he remembered.

"So I stand here, stand firm I shall." As he said this his magic responded to his resolve and managed to detach the parasite.

"Begone!" he demanded, flicking his hand out and away, banishing it from his body. Watching the shade fly away he returned back to the present and watched with tired eyes as it shot out of his body and away into the world.

His fatigue was so great that as he collapsed into the darkness, he didn't hear the murmured "obliviate" coming from Dumbledore. What he didn't know was that without the parasite, Harry's chains to magic's rule was broken and it formed a shell around his memory to protect it. Although he wouldn't discover it until he woke up but his magic was now only limited by his imagination.

* * *

It was 4 days later and the day of the Leaving Feast when Harry awoke in the Hospital Wing. Looking into his mindscape to check the damages he discovered a filament covering part of the city that surrounded his core-tower that represented his magic. As he examined the filament, he felt as if this would cause him to forget something so he decided to banish all of the filament from his mind. His magic obeyed and his mind was now clean and fresh and the difference was so clear that he felt it in his bones.

It was soon after when Albus Dumbledore swept into the hospital wing and made his way over to Harry. Before he could say anything he was interrupted by Harry.

"Save whatever it is you want to say Dumbledore. I have no intention of speaking to you and I would like to ask you to leave. I found the spell you cast on me so I am quite angry." Harry's eyes were glowing and with a glare, sent Dumbledore's clothes flying away and out of the infirmary.

"Madam Pomfrey!" he called out. When she bustled over with a rack of potions that Harry knew he would have to drink he continued. "Please keep Albus Dumbledore away from me if I'm ever in your care, I would be ever so grateful. He tried to erase my memory so I don't trust him. This remains under Patient-Healer Confidentiality right?"

She assured him that it was and that she would try her best, recommending that he not struggle and drink everything to get his magic up and running again so that he had a better chance of defending himself. He was up and walking that evening so he fashioned himself a cane with one of his pins, spelled to be blunt and solid, with silks running criss-crossed down to the tip and made his way to the Hufflepuff common room where he was tackled once more by Susan. Hannah made her way more slowly but engulfed him in a large hug when she finally reached him.

When questioned about why he was in the Hospital Wing he answered with a cheerful "I fought off Voldemort" that silenced the whole room. He went into his room and took down all of his security charms since he didn't need them and stored everything into his basket. He then touched one of the runes that would cancel and return any magic that he had infused into his materials that was not currently present in his basket. Examining his stores he decided that he would need to restock when he got back to his relatives.

Flicking his wand out, he stared at it. It felt like a piece of wood. Wondering if it was possible for a wand to become unsuited for someone overnight, he removed the fabric from around his wand and set it into his basket before holstering it again. He may as well just go around doing wandless magic once more, since it was what he was used to.

Waving his hand, he packed up everything except for his workbasket. He sent out a pulse for Hedwig and minutes later came flying in through his window. He asked her if she wanted to fly back to Privet Drive she hooted positively and after nuzzling his cheek flew once more out the window to make her way back.

He made his way back to the Common Room and settled down in one of the squishy armchairs and resigned himself to be the snuggle pillow of Susan for the next few hours who looked like she was going to latch onto him and never let go.

The Leaving feast came and went with Hufflepuff coming 2nd after Slytherin thanks to Ronald Weasley and his supposed sexual harassment of Harry, which had people laughing even now. After a last night's sleep in the cosy dormitory, they made their way down to the station, laughing and joking with each other and especially Susan and Harry, where it was becoming a common sight for them to be attached at the arms wherever they go.

The train ride back to London was spent in friendly chaos, after Harry had spelled the doors shut to only let in those who were either already inside or had an armband, which included his Council and Padma and Daphne who ended up 3rd and 4th once more. He was contemplating giving them a Council armband but decided that he would ponder this over the holidays. Spelling the doors shut also had the benefit of keeping out Weasley and Malfoy so that they could see inside but sound didn't make it in and neither did their bodies. It was quite amusing watching their mouths move then start brawling with one another, with the henchmen on both sides joining in.

All in all Harry felt as if this year was worth it even as he made his way back to the muggle side of the platform after giving all the girls hugs and wishing them happy summers before sharing a firm handshake with Neville. When he saw his relatives he gave them a small but genuine smile and followed them without a fuss. He could survive the summers, he decided, especially since he didn't need his wand to do magic, not that it worked for him anymore. Something he would definitely need to get checked out, just like his finances with Gringotts. Maybe this summer wouldn't be as bad as the ones before. He could only hope.

* * *

 **Thats Year one done! I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited both myself and my story and followed the story. It gave me the joy and enthusiasm to keep writing and hopefully for the rest of the years so keep the reviews coming :D Once more I do not own anything in the stories, merely weaving the ideas together. The original stories are owned by J.K Rowling and Tamora Pierce!**


	9. Chapter 9

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 9

In Harry's opinion summer break was going great. He wasn't being forced to do chores, rather he traded his services around the house for food and bathroom rights, never mind that he should have received that anyway. This was all settled the day he arrived back from the station. He had dragged his trunk into the door as the last one into the house.

When the door slammed and his uncle turned around and looked like he was about to start yelling, Harry raised a finger and entered monarch mode. He just twitched his hand and his trunk rose silently. He raised an eyebrow at his relatives and watched as their faces turned rather pale.

"This is how it's going to go. I'll take my things to my room and you don't get to say a word about it. I'll do chores in exchange for food and bathroom rights. Other than that I'll either be out or in my room. I'm planning to go back to the bank and checking on my family finances since apparently I have lots of money. Treat me right and I'll give you some money based on how well you treat me while I'm here to offset any costs. Do we have a deal?"

Sentence by sentence, color returned to his relatives faces. When he had finally finished what he wanted to say everyone turned contemplative and turned away from him to have a family discussion. 10 minutes later they had an agreement and asked him what he chores he was willing to do while he was there.

Harry thought for a bit before deciding that he would do the gardening, fix any rips or tears in the clothing as well as washing and drying them. With that settled Harry and Vernon shook on it before Harry made his way back to his room. Seeing a multitude of locks on his door he raised an eyebrow at his uncle who had the decency to look sheepish and went to get his toolbox and remove them. He smiled and went into his room before exhaling and letting the magic inside of him settle.

He looked around and decided that he needed to redecorate but before that he set up security and silencing runes around his room, hanging charms from the ceiling with sticking spells on squares of linen. He then saturate his room with his magic, allowing him easier access to change what he wanted.

Changing the old, creaky bed into a replica of his 4 poster bed from Hogwarts took a minor effort, while changing the color took a lot of energy. As he rested he contemplated on the differences between the two. Maybe it had to do with paint being a coat while the bed was a solid object? He figured he would bring it up with Professor McGonagall when he had time. He then spent the rest of the day changing the rest of the furniture into things of his liking before heading downstairs to eat with the rest of his relatives.

It was the 2nd day back when his days turned routine. In the mornings he did his chores, while after he had a shower he would head towards London and check out the fashion stores, keeping track of all the latest non-magical fashions. He would then head off to Diagon Alley where he shared tips of magical weaving with Madam Malkin who would inform him of any special deals on fabrics that she could order for him.

* * *

The first day he went to Diagon Alley, Harry made sure to go to Ollivanders to get his wand checked out as he had felt uneasy about losing the connection to it. The discussion on magical theory that followed lasted for half an hour before they had to stop in order for Ollivander to serve some other customers. Harry promised to write some more to continue the discussion but managed to walk away with the reason his wand wasn't working properly.

The connection to his wand was dependent on his connection to Voldemort, but with the parasite now gone he had full access to his magic and therefore he would need a different wand. They had gotten through a few wands before it became apparent to Harry that no wand would fit him, they all just felt like wood.

His next stop was to Gringotts to check on his finances. He walked up the steps to the marble building and nodded to the guards as he entered through the doors. The goblin guards hid their shocked expressions to a slight widening of their eyes but otherwise showed no reaction. It was not often that a wizard showed them respect.

Harry patiently waited in line until a new teller was available.

"Greetings goblin. I confess to not knowing many if any of your customs but I wish to enquire if my family has a family vault given that I have a trust vault."

"Name?" the goblin said in a neutral tone.

"Potter" Harry replied, just as neutral.

The goblin pressed a hand to an intercom-like object and said something in a low guttural rumble. "Ironfist shall be with you shortly."

"Thank you for your time." Harry placed 3 galleons from when he collected his money last year on the goblin's table and nodded before moving away and allowing him to call the next customer. He moved towards the seats that were available and sat down as he anticipated a long wait.

10 minutes later, a surprisingly short time compared to some of the other customers, the teller Harry had approached called out that Ironfist had arrived. Harry stood and made his way over to the newly arrived goblin.

"Greetings Ironfist." He managed to get out before being interrupted.

"This way." Ironfist indicated that Harry should follow him and led him down a corridor before opening one and letting Harry in first before entering and shutting the door. Harry made his way to the seat facing the desk to be used by visitors but waited to sit down until Ironfist went to sit down as well.

"Apologies Mr Potter, but it is better for business to be discussed in private. These offices are spelled for privacy so nothing we discuss shall be heard by anyone other than ourselves."

"Thank you Ironfist. Your discretion is greatly appreciated."

"Not a problem Mr Potter. It is the least Gringotts can do for you. Now what may I do for you today?"

"I wanted to inquire about anything Gringotts may know about my family history and the state of my family's holdings and investments."

"Very well. Just a moment." With that said Ironfist rose and went to the bookcase located in the office and browsed through the books for a moment before pulling down 3 books. Two were moderately sized books while the last was a slim book, much like a portfolio.

"The first book is about your family history, more extensive details can be found in the Potter Manor Library. The second is about each of your family investments, with each page being information about a different investment. The final one is about the different holdings your family has around the world."

Harry took a moment to flip through the investment book.

"Is there a summary page for this one? It seems to be eluding me."

Ironfist merely chuckled at this.

"Wizarding accounting has the summary at the back." Harry nodded his understanding and turned to the page in question. The Potter family vault held tens of millions of galleons, and small piles of sickles and knuts, with items such as museum pieces, armors and weapons and books from ancestors that had been compiled over the decades.

"I'd like to open a new investment vault that starts with 1 million galleons and use the earnings for further investments. When it hits 5 million deposit the profits in the family vault. Would you be willing to make the necessary investments to make the most profit Ironfist?"

"It would be my pleasure Mr Potter."

"Thank you for your services in advance then." He thought for a moment to ponder something then nodded to himself. "I'd like for you to take 5% of any profits you make as an added incentive."

Ironfist looked pensive for a moment before accepting. "You sure an odd human Mr Potter. Most wizards do not trust goblins and prefer to make uncertain investments rather than leave it to us."

"While this may not be your first option for a living but you would be quite skilled to be a manager would you not? I know when to leave things with experts." Harry replied with a smile, not needing to explicitly state his trust.

Ironfist gave a bark of a laugh and a predatory grin before asking if Harry needed anything else done.

"I would like to enquire about an Heir or Head ring for the Potter family. Other students at school seem to have them and if my family is as Ancient and Noble as it seems to be I should have one as well." The latter was said more hesitantly, showing his age and lack of knowledge more than anything else.

"Ah yes, the rings of the family. We can provide you with the Heir ring without problems but the Head of House ring would encounter some difficulties. To claim the Head ring you would need to either hit the age of majority or have magic deem you old enough to compete in of age events such as the Triwizard Tournament that had been discontinued in the 1700's from the deaths of too many competitors."

Ironfist reached into a drawer of his desk and pulled out a ring box the size of Harry's palm before handing it over. In it was a plain gold band with a flat gold disk the size of his thumbnail with two griffons rearing up on their hind legs etched into the surface holding up a capital P with a perfectly cut ruby sitting in the hole of the P.

Harry was awestruck at the sight of the ring, acknowledging that every Heir and Head of House Potter had worn it at some point before him. It was when Ironfist cleared his throat with a small warm smile on his face that Harry came back to reality and gently and almost reverently slid the ring onto his finger. The ring grew warm, almost like a hug from his parents, or Susan before settling over him like a cloak.

A focused look slid over Harry's face and he slowly stood before pulling out the last of his galleons from his pouch and placing them on Ironfist's table.

"Thank you for all you've done for me today Ironfist. I'd like someone to take me down to my vault to get some more galleons but other than that I have no more business today."

"Griphook will take you down could you also prepare someone to convert some galleons into pounds please. About 100 galleons will do."

"Of course Heir Potter. May your gold ever flow."

"Yours as well Ironfist." With that Harry accompanied Griphook down to his vault where he took out 600 galleons where he separated them into two pouches. One holding 500 galleons while the other held the 100 that was to be converted. After he went up to the surface he went to the conversion counter and handed over the 100G pouch.

"I believe Ironfist told you I was coming?"

"Indeed sir. Here are your pounds." The goblin replied, handing over a stack of pounds wrapped with a band.

Harry handed over two galleons and thanked the goblin for his time before turning and walking away.

* * *

It was now the second week into the holidays and Harry was wondering why he wasn't receiving any mail. He had sent Hedwig to Susan with a note saying that he would be in the Leaky Cauldron at 1pm for lunch each day with 15 minutes leeway but he never received a reply. Hedwig returned but her feathers were ruffled and annoyed at something that Harry couldn't discern.

Even though he grew worried about his mail problem he still attended the Leaky Cauldron for lunch each day before he began his wandering of the Alley. It was the beginning of the third week when answers revealed themselves in the form of a house elf. One named Dobby.

Harry had been pruning the hedges when he had looked away for a moment before turning back and seeing a pair of large bulbous eyes staring back at him inches away from his face. He jumped back and threw up a silencing and aversion ward that would make anyone not from Number 4 turn away and swore violently, bringing out Aunt Petunia to scold him.

She had begun to act more familial to Harry after he had proposed his deal upon returning to the house. While Vernon and Dudley had simply ignored him, Petunia had begun to make the effort to get to know Harry and treating him more like a nephew, sure it was more scolding him based on his language and sugar intake but in general she had begun to soften towards him.

When she threatened him with scrubbing his mouth with soap he merely pointed at the large eyes that were hiding in the hedge. When he saw them he had reflexively put his into the hedge and channeled magic suppression wards and snared them around the body in the hedge. His aunt looked around slightly panicked but calmed when he assured her that he had cast magic to make people look away like he had been ever since he got back and did his chores.

She pursed her lips at the mention of magic but did admit that it had its perks. Harry had finished most of the hanging, drying and mending almost immediately and could concentrate on the gardening. His magic was subtle and could be ignored and not in your face that Lily and almost every other wizard and witch preferred.

"Now then…" Harry began in a cold voice which sent shivers up both the house elf's and Petunia's backs. "You will be telling me why you have come here, won't you…?" "Dobby sir." "Dobby. Now why have you come here?"

"Harry Potter must not go back to Hogwarts. There be deadly plots afoot." At this point Dobby started to punish himself. Attempted to at least. The hedges had snared him rather tightly after all.

"Do you know what plots?" A shake of the head.

"Can you tell me how?" Another shake.

"Can you tell me who?" A very vehement shake.

"So essentially you can't tell me anything but a general warning about danger at Hogwarts." An enthusiastic nod.

"Right then. Thank you for the warning but I think I'll be fine. Now I'm sure house elves are capable of stealing letters. Have you been stealing mine?" Dobby's eyes widened and looked up at Harry. Petunia gave a small whimper and Harry could tell that she was being affected by 'the look'.

"The look doesn't work on me. Now my letters Dobby." Ears wilting, Dobby reached in and brought out a stack of letters and handing them over. "Thank you Dobby, you may leave now. Do not return unless I call you!" His eyes blazed and the magic could be felt in the air, showing how serious Harry was. Dobby nodded frantically and Harry waved his hand and returned the hedges to their original shape but perfectly trimmed while Dobby popped away. He reigned in his magic and turned to his aunt who was pale.

"Are you alright?" Harry was concerned as he didn't want to scare away his new aunt, since he like this one better than the old version.

"So much power…" she breathed out. "You could do whatever you want with us and yet you don't…" She hesitated for a moment before moving and wrapping him in a gentle hug. "You remind me of your grandfather. He was so strong yet so gentle." Her eyes became glazed as she remembered her younger years and when her family was whole. "Please don't ever change…" she smiled down at Harry, actually smiled. Harry was shocked but nodded. He would stand true to his morals but not right now. Right now he had to send apologetic letters to everyone and hope that they wouldn't be too angry at him.

* * *

 **Short chapter this time to warm things up. Should be longer in the next chapter hopefully!**


	10. Chapter 10

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizard

Chapter 10

Harry spent the next few days reading all the letters he had not received and then writing replies to each person, telling them that he was fine and that he hadn't received them until now. He also included that he went on daily trips to London and Diagon Alley and that he might see them there. He sent more detailed letters to Susan, Hannah, Hermione and Neville giving a general recount of his meetings with Ollivander and Ironfist asking for help with the more subtle customs of Wizarding culture.

He had also managed to finish his homework during the first two weeks due to boredom. He felt that they were of a reasonable quality that wouldn't have the teachers complaining and figured he would resume putting more effort in to his classwork when he got back to Hogwarts.

Harry experimented with the different materials that Madam Malkin had managed to secure for him. He found that it was easier to weave the magical materials into clothing due to the residual magic in them but found that the non-magical materials acted as better conduits for his magic.

He had come home one day from wandering Diagon Alley when he stopped short at the sight of the Dursleys dressed in formal wear. He raised an eyebrow and asked if they were having a party.

"The Masons are coming over for dinner and it could make or break a huge deal so I want everything to be perfect."

"If that's the case, would you like me to make some alterations to your clothing? I'm up to date with the latest non-magical fashions so I can make it so that you seem up to date." Vernon and Dudley visibly hesitated but Petunia did not. She clearly was making an effort and decided to trust him.

He smiled at her and brought out his workbasket. He warned her that it might be a bit uncomfortable but he would absolutely not harm her in any way. She visibly relaxed and motioned for him to begin with a nod. At seeing the nod, Harry brought out some red and yellow silk for embroidery and sent it into the hem of her dress and sent it around the bottom of the dress in an over and under pattern. Using his magic he partially merged the silk with the fabric of the dress so that it looked like it was made like that. He then sent the silk up the sides and around the back in a feather-like pattern so that it looked like she had red and yellow wings folded against her back.

He then pulled out two pins and bent the needles until they had a vague earring shape before infusing them with his magic and transfiguring it into gold, while changing the pinheads into small rubies. He handed the earrings over and smiled when she turned to put them on straight away. She gaped at how good her outfit looked and sent a look of pride towards Harry and ruffled his hair. He grinned sheepishly, still not used to the affection she was showing him and looked towards his other relatives with a raised eyebrow.

They felt uncomfortable at seeing the way he waved his hand and things moved but their fears were unfounded when he laid a hand on each shoulder and sent his magic into their clothes, smoothing creases, adding support to other places and making them generally more comfortable. He then placed a pin on the underside of the table.

"I've put enough magic into this pin to anchor the changes I've made until tomorrow evening just in case. It wouldn't do for the changes to revert itself halfway through dinner now would it?" Harry informed them with a gentle grin, having them comfortable enough for him to use magic on them was a huge breakthrough.

"I won't be down for dinner though. I've already eaten so I'll be in my room. I'm also going to put up aversion charms so that they don't notice me. Is that alright?"

They nodded and Harry exited the room with an exaggerated bow. He had bought a few bolts of fabrics and planned to make himself some pants, shirts and a new jacket which should tide him over until he had to buy new clothing. He was also going to attempt to make a cloak out of non-magical silk since it wouldn't do to ruin the expensive Acromantula silk for an experiment.

From what he could hear throughout the night, the dinner seemed like a huge success. Harry had a minor crisis when Dobby popped back into his room and attempted to move the pudding but when Harry felt him arrive he was ready with magic suppression rope and hogtied Dobby before he could do anything. He waited until he heard the Masons leaving before untying Dobby and started releasing magic into his eyes.

"I know you mean well but enough is enough. You need to leave me alone. I'm on guard for trouble and I won't be alone. I have friends I can rely on and your helping me is making things more difficult. So please. Please just stop helping and I'll be fine."

"Dobby is being sorry great Harry Potter but Dobby is just wanting you to be safe."

"If you're worried then ask me if anything is happening before you start trying to help. Understand?"

"Dobby is understanding. Dobby is leaving now." With that Dobby, the slightly insane house elf popped out of his room once more. Harry vented his frustration into making his new cloak and writing a letter to Susan asking if she and the others wanted to shop for their school supplies tomorrow. It was well past 2AM when he finally finished his new cloak and he gently placed it on his mannequin that he had purchased via Madam Malkin to check its length before climbing into bed and passing out.

* * *

The next morning he received a reply stating that they would meet him at the Leaky Cauldron at 1PM and that she had passed on the word to the others. Harry was rather excited as this would be the first time that he would see them since the end of term. He was so excited that he hadn't remembered that his birthday had passed while Dobby was holding his communication blackout so was quite shocked when they showed up holding presents.

They had explained that when they tried to owl them to him the owls refused to leave so they decided to just hold on to them until they saw him next. These explanations came with an obligatory smack on the arm for making them worry. In the exact same spot. EACH TIME. So it was with a pouting Harry and cheerful group that made their way into Diagon Alley with Madams Bones and Longbottom as chaperones.

Their first stop was Gringotts where Harry once more nodded in greeting to the guards who returned the nod to the rest of the group's surprise. He just raised his eyebrow in a shockingly similar way to the Bones' and a slight tilt to his head.

The others just shook theirs and made their way to the tellers where they went down to their vaults to pick up some money except for Hermione who made her way to the conversion desk who handed over a small wad of bills and received a pouch of galleons in return. They then spent the time waiting for the others talking about how their holidays have been and how easy the homework had been.

They spent the next few hours purchasing all the things they needed until they went to Flourish and Blotts to purchase their school books. When Harry read their book list for the next year he frowned at the list seeing that they needed 7 books all written by the same person.

By the time the group reached the book shop they saw a large crowd forming outside in a large line that seemed to be full of witches. They had just entered the bookshop when they saw the reason why a large crowd had gathered. Set up at a wall adjacent to the counter was a blond man that looked like he spent hours each morning trying to look as good as he possibly could.

When he heard the girls squeal at the sight of one Gilderoy Lockhart, he shook his head and exchanged eye-rolls with Neville. It seemed that the Madams shared the same feeling. Feeling something off about Lockhart, Harry sent a pulse to examine the man, noting that he hadn't even noticed.

Harry felt deceit and greed radiating from the man in such large amounts that Harry felt sick. He excused himself from the group and made his way to another bookshelf that held books that corresponded to the Runes and Arithmacy courses that would be available to him next year.

As he examined the runes books he noted that they worked in a similar way to the way he used his charms so he put that course down as something he would have to research more.

As he set the book into a basket and started selecting more books that held beginner, novice and journeyman level information so that he could gain a solid understanding of the subject before next year. He also went around the store and selected the books he needed for this year excluding DADA since he judged it to be a waste. He did pick up the standard book of spells for Year 2 however.

Harry had been about to make his way to the counter to pay, thankful that they had bought everything else before arriving here since it seemed like the girls would want to be here for a while when he was accosted by Draco and his father.

"Mr Potter." Lucius' voice was smooth and silky, much like his hair. Harry felt uneasy as he could tell that this was a dangerous man.

"Lord Malfoy. Heir Malfoy." He greeted back, extending his hand and revealing his Heir ring when he reached forward to shake the man's hand.

"Ah Heir Potter. My apologies, I was uninformed that you had received the ring."

"It's not your fault, Lord Malfoy. I had received it when I inquired about it at Gringotts after noticing many of my contemporaries at Hogwarts were in possession of similar rings. I must say that I am envious about the amount of communication that you have with your son. I must honestly say that I am quite jealous and wish that I could do the same."

Madam Longbottom hid a snort inside a cough that was masterfully done, seeing as she had come over to check where Harry was since Madam Bones was more than capable of watching over 1 bored male teen and 3 currently fangirling females.

"Dowager Longbottom, a pleasure as always."

"Lord Malfoy." She replied with a curt nod.

"Come Draco, we must go and collect your things seeing as your mother is slightly preoccupied at the moment."

"Yes father." Draco moved off to follow his father but not before shouldering into Harry and muttering that he should watch his back at Hogwarts this year.

Harry frowned at the threat but figured that he was just bluffing. He had just set his books down on the counter when he heard a commotion at the door and saw a gang of redheads walk in. He waved to the Twins and Percy who were wearing their armbands and jokingly saluted to Harry.

Lockhart had looked up at that moment and noticing Harry, swept over and dragged him away from the counter without permission.

"Harry Potter. What a pleasant surprise to see you here. I see that you couldn't resist seeing another celebrity in the flesh am I right? Smile Harry. We'll be on the front page by tomorrow morning." He said with a large grin that revealed teeth so white Harry could have sworn they would glow in the dark. His hand on Harry's shoulder said otherwise as it slowly retreated from his shoulder and gently ran down his back.

The feel of the hand moving snapped Harry out his shock and he channeled his magic to his eyes and snarled at the man.

"Remove your hand this instant before I get trigger-happy with my magic. How dare you touch me without my chaperone's permission? This is a clear breach of magical etiquette or is Gilderoy Lockhart too good for common courtesy?" Harry was pissed and more than a little shaken at what the man had attempted to do. He moved back towards Madam Longbottom and practically attached himself to her, knowing that she would eviscerate the man before allowing him to touch Harry again.

The smile that she gave him settled most of his nerves but what happened after made him edgy once more.

"Bet you loved that didn't you Potter. Must have loved fame so much that you couldn't resist being the center of attention once more." It was Idiot 1 in the flesh. It seemed that he had forgotten the lesson that Harry had taught him last year.

"Leave him alone Ronald. He can't help that he's so famous and dreamy." Everyone's eyebrows who heard that raised as high as they could go before she turned bright red. With a small eep she turned and ran to her mother and hid behind her.

The adults all chuckled at her reaction while Harry turned to Susan mouthed to her 'I'm dreamy?' who replied with an embarrassed grin and a shrug. He looked at Madam Bones, eyes wide, in confusion who did the typical female reaction that he seemed to get and cooed and pinched his cheeks. He just shook his head and made his way to the twins and Percy to ask and only got head pats and grins. He sighed and figured this would be one of those things he would only understand when he was older.

The rest of the trip passed without incident not including the minor scuffle between Lords Malfoy and Weasley in which fists, rather than spells were thrown. Harry thought he felt a pulse for dark magic but he couldn't pinpoint it and so put it out of his mind.

He spent the rest of the holidays making more of his own clothing to fill out the rest of his closet and examining his magic to figure out why he didn't need a wand. Looking over the memories of the dreams he came to the conclusion that the leech that was attached to his magic was his link for him to use wanded magic. He could feel it pulse in the same way Sandry felt before she was trained. It became a common sight in Number 4 Privet Drive for Harry to be playing with some fabric in some way or another.

He had purchased some non-magical portable looms, embroidery hoops and bobbins and spent his down time either preparing his own wool while infusing his magic into it to make it more pliable to his will or embroidering landscapes such as Hogwarts and the Lake or the Forbidden Forest for his aunt.

* * *

Soon enough September 1st came around and it was time to go back to Hogwarts. Harry was excited to see everyone, especially Susan. He was quite confused as to why he felt so happy when they walked arm in arm but he figured he would let the answer come to him in time. No point ruining something by running his mouth off.

His uncle dropped him off at the station at 9AM as he was on his way to work. Before Harry got out of the car and unloaded his trunk he handed the wad of bills he had promised to his uncle.

"See you next summer uncle?" Harry tentatively asked as he wasn't sure if it was an act or not.

"Of course Harry. Your magic isn't so bad. Don't expect me to be welcoming of any of your friends though. There's something unnatural about the way they do magic and I don't want to be anywhere near it." Vernon said brusquely.

Harry nodded in understanding, unloaded his things onto a trolley and bid his uncle farewell, receiving a nod in return before driving off. Harry walked towards the wall that lead to the Platform and made his way through. The platform was quite empty at the moment so he floated his things into one of the larger compartments and warded it to the select magical signatures of his friends and Guard before opening one of Lockhart's books that he was forced to buy.

He spent 10 minutes trying to read it before throwing it away in disgust. Most of the information in the books was about Lockhart, Lockhart and more Lockhart. Barely anything was about the creatures that the books were named after and that more than anything confirmed to Harry that he was a fake. To calm himself down, he sat on the floor, pulled out a few spools of different colored silks and set them on a step spool stand and started braiding them.

He had a black silk of a larger width as the center and used green and red silk as the initial over braid before adding yellow and blue silk as the under braid. He found it quite challenging and he was so engrossed in it that he didn't notice the compartment filling up slowly. One by one, two by two, those he called his friends entered and joined the crowd watching as he worked his magic.

By the time he finished he had a 2 meter long braid of intertwined silks that was mesmerizing to look at. He then coiled it up slowly and making the circles smaller until there was only enough room at the top to thread the rest of the braid which he did and then stuck it to the inside of the coil and weaved the ends together. The final production was a tight spiral that could stand upright but he wasn't satisfied yet.

Closing his slightly strained eyes, he straightened his arm up stretched them up. When his arms went as far as they could go they hit something soft. Rather confused at what this could be he turned his hand so he could grab it and squeeze. Frowning, he couldn't figure out what it was so he just kept squeezing without opening his eyes. He knew that windows weren't soft and neither were the window sills and he was in the middle of the compartment so he wouldn't be feeling the seats.

It was only when a snort sounded throughout the compartment that the dam on the laughter at the hilarious scene broke out. Thoroughly startled, Harry jumped into the air at least one foot into the air which was rather impressive considering he was sitting on the ground. As he did so he heard a noise that was part eep, part squeal with a hint of a moan in it. As he landed back on the floor he wondered why everyone was laughing and when they even got there.

Slowly he turned and his eyes followed his arm until he was looking at where his hand landed. It had landed right on Susan's recently developing breasts and he had quite a handful of them. Slowly he tilted his head back and his eyes travelled upwards to Susan's face and back down to where his hand was. This repeated a few times which was just as funny to everyone else who were starting to struggle to breathe.

As if to confirm he was squeezing what he thought he was he loosened his hand, rubbed it gently in circles before squeezing once more. Then his actions dawned on him and he would later insist that he passed out. He was a boy and boys don't pass out.

He came to a short time later with his head resting on something soft. He slowly opened his eyes and looked up into what he thought was a firey angel.

"Did I die from shock and wake up in heaven because if you're an angel then I never want to leave."

Susan blushed from both Harry's comment and the howls, catcalls and laughter from everyone in the compartment which included Percy, Fred, George, Hermione, Neville, Hannah, Padma, Daphne and someone he figured was Tracey as they hadn't officially met yet but one was never far from the other.

"Did I say that out loud?" Harry groaned and covered his face and rolled over, coincidentally Susan's lap which brought forth another round of breath taking laughter.

"Up you get Ha-Harry. We're nearly there and you're the only one who hasn't changed yet." Everyone but Harry noticed Susan's slight stutter at Harry's name.

"Alrigh- Wait. Did you change while I was in here?" Harry asked, gobsmacked at the very idea.

The girls blushed as a group to the laughter of the boys.

"What did you do? Walk over me as you did? Is that why I feel sore?"

Padma coughed, blush visible on her darker tone of skin.

"Someone may have been feeling a bit nervous that you would wake up at the wrong moment and may have accidentally fallen on top of you."

Susan protested at this, vehemently protested.

"It's not my fault! You saw my reaction earlier! Can you blame me?" By the time she realised what she said she covered her open mouth in shock and her blush became even more prominent, leaving the slight pink and entering a hair mimicking dark shade of crimson. It really was a pity that Harry had no idea what she was talking about and turned towards everyone else, eyes doe-like and head tilted. Everyone cooed at his innocence and either pinched his cheeks or pat his head, causing him to pout.

Sighing in defeat at the lack of information once more, he stood up once more, turned around and wrapped Susan in a rib-cracking hug and whispered sorry into her ear. Feeling that it wasn't enough despite her insistence that it was, he thought about what he could do for a moment before reaching a conclusion.

He gently picked up the silk pyramid and sent his magic running through it to assist in the reshaping of it. He gently moulded it until it was more like a rectangular lantern that bulged out in the middle instead of a pyramid. He pulled out some silver, bronze and white silk that he quickly braided in a French style before weaving it into the top to act like a handle. He then weaved a small, woollen light charm and hung it in the middle before sending his magic racing through the silk and transfiguring the lantern into coloured glass before charming everything with magically drawn unbreakable and ambient acceptance runes.

Harry handed the glass lantern to Susan with an exaggerated bow and a gentle smile. She took it with a shaking hand and came to a silent resolution that she would make him hers and that she wouldn't give him up to anyone for anything.

Harry, of course, had no idea what she was thinking as everyone insisted on keeping him in the dark and preserve his innocence. He did get the deep base impulse of wanting to grab Susan's breasts more however, even if some greater presence in his mind locked it away with a passion. Almost like a mother's determination and wrath.

The girls were rightly jealous and when they insisted on each getting a lantern as well, George joked that all they needed to get one was to let him cop a feel.

Tracey seemed to deliberate in her mind before Daphne smacked her on the back of her head and stating.

"Bad Tracey. No bad thoughts"

Tracey pouted at that and sulkily reminded everyone that Harry needed to change.

Harry just looked down at his dual layered black shirts and shorts underneath black jeans before waving his hand down his body starting from the shoulder. Before everyone's eyes, his clothing gently changed from non-magical casual wear to the official Hogwarts uniform robes with Hufflepuff badge and trim.

He just grinned and leaned against the wall, sitting on the floor since they were running out of room on the benches and pulled Susan down with him before taking her arm in his. He spent the rest of his trip answering questions about what he could do with his magic, getting to know Padma, Daphne and Tracey better and basking in the warmth that Susan was radiating from her still present blush.

The train pulled into the station and Harry, Susan, Hannah and Neville had entered one carriage while Padma, Tracey, Daphne and Hermione had entered another. Fred, George and Percy had left them on the station to find their friends from their own years.

They had reached the castle gates no problem and the boys helped the girls down by taking their hands. After they had gotten down Hannah had let go of Neville's hand with a light blush but Susan had no intention of letting go. She pulled him up the path gently by the hand and Harry simply followed with a happy grin on his face. All the girls who saw them cooed at the pair while the boys merely laughed and clapped Harry on the shoulder as they passed them. He looked at Susan for clarification but got slightly pouty as everyone still refused to tell him why they were acting weird.

The Sorting went by without many interesting first years. They just tended to blur into one another to Harry. The only first years he paid any attention to were was a slightly lost blonde first year who reminded Harry of someone but he couldn't remember who and red haired girl who seemed to be another member of House Weasley if he remembered correctly.

When the feast appeared, Harry dug in, gently pulling his hand away from Susan's who hadn't let go. She pouted slightly at the loss of slight warmth that Harry had felt as well before it turned into a smile when Harry served her pieces of everything that he was getting for himself.

Harry had sent out a gently pulse of magic to reconnect to his web that he had left in place when last year finished and twitched slightly when he felt a large pulse hit the moving tree on the lake. He recognized the signature as belonging to Ronald who he thought was simply in another compartment.

"Oh dear. There's going to be trouble." He murmured to the curious ears of everyone around them.

"Our now second youngest Weasley appears to have crashed what seems to be an enchanted car into the Womping Willow. From the impact I wouldn't be surprised if his wand is broken now, or if a howler arrives tomorrow." He answered when someone asked what had happened. There were snorts of laughter all around the table. "Oh, and there goes Snape. Ronald is going to have a wonderful start to the year isn't he?" Harry mentioned casually.

He was a bit absentminded because Susan had taken his hand once more and discreetly rubbed circles on his hand with her thumb as they shared a small treacle tart. Thanks to his absentmindedness he missed the jokes and teases that Prince Potter was taking on a different meaning.

After the feast the students made their way to their Common Rooms and beds after another ear-rendering round of the school song. He let go of Susan's hand when they reached the door to the girl's dormitory and bowed himself away, lamenting out loud the separation from such beautiful lady before twirling with a Snape robe snap and walking away to find his room.

When he finally arrived he opened his work basket and recast the security braids that he hung over the door frame and the light and alarm charms that he hung from the ceiling before showering and undergoing his nightly ablutions and collapsing into his bed into the warm embrace of Morpheus.


	11. Chapter 11

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Chapter 11

Classes began with a flurry of books and homework as those who had already finished, reviewed them and those who hadn't moved with an exaggerated haste in a bid to finish it all. September 2nd just happened to be a Saturday which gave them some much needed time to finish everything.

He spent his weekend in the Common Room with Susan, Hannah and Cedric, who was a prefect and Guard. He had some wool and was braiding them into a cord to act as a makeshift rope. He felt uneasy this year and not from life-threatening danger but he couldn't figure out why. So he prepared himself to be ready anytime. He also did requests from his friends as he enjoyed the looks on their faces when he was finished.

Monday classes began with the absolute joy that was Lockhart. Double Defense. First thing. When Harry read his timetable he slammed his head into the table, much to the sympathy of the other boys. The girls were squealing in joy however and movement could be heard early in the morning as they tried to look their best. Except for Susan. Bless her soul, Harry was so glad she wasn't like the others. What he didn't know was that she had her own celebrity that she got to see every day who paid attention to her.

Hermione, Padma, Hannah and Tracey all had the Lockhart Lovebug and could be heard gossiping and chattering all the time about Lockhart. It was enough to drive a guy mad. Poor Neville. His ears will never be the same again. That wasn't his first thought though. No, Harry's first thought was to cackle at him. They were friends like that.

By the time DADA finished for the first time, Harry was seriously considering asking Professor Sprout if he and Susan could just self-study for the year. Unfortunately it seemed like she also had the Lockhart Lovebug, if only a very, very mild form of it but not enough for it to affect her job performance. Must be the teeth Harry figured. They were far too white to be normal.

Harry had taken to looking up wizarding customs and history in his spare time to make sure he didn't commit any political mistakes since he had taken on his heir ring. He had also started writing to Madam Bones about what he had accidentally done on the train and hinting that he had interest in dating Susan in the next few years and wanted to make sure he went about it correctly. He also wrote to the Flamels asking for advice about his teenage years.

What he had received was a very long letter form of the talk that had him mortified and unable to look at any girl in the eye for days. Susan had been worried as he had avoided touching her and took her concerns to Cedric as a fellow Puff and older male. When he had asked Harry about it Harry showed him the letter he had received from the Flamels.

After Cedric got over his shock that he was writing to THE Nicholas Flamel and began reading he laughed and laughed and simply couldn't stop. When Susan confronted him later on he simply told her that Harry had received the Talk and let him be for now. He had also hinted at taking things slow to get him to readjust to her presence. Blushing cutely, she just nodded and fled to her room until she got herself back under control, remembering the time her auntie had sat her down and given her the witches version of the Talk.

* * *

The next few weeks saw Susan gently coaxing Harry back into physical contact with her. It started with pats on the back and gentle teasing of his hair when it looked particularly messy some days and by the time Halloween arrived she had progressed from touches to his arm back to holding his hand. Harry still had wide eyes and slight blushes every time it happened but he no longer shied away from her.

This came to the teasing disappoint from the rest of their close friends and genuine disappoint from the rest of the female contingent and even some of the younger males which disturbed Harry quite a bit. While he had understood that his joy in physical contact with Susan was natural, no one had taken the time to explain the more open clarifications to people's relationships.

There was one incident during the weeks of September and October that proved to be memorable to many of their friends and seniors. They had been sitting down at the Gryffindor table with the Council and Guard around them when an owl fluttered down in front of Susan, who took the letter off the owl and gave it some chicken that was being served for lunch. The owl finished eating with a grateful hoot before flying off to the Owlery for a rest.

She took one look at the opening sentence before turning on Harry.

"Why were you writing to my aunt Harry?"

"I wrote to your…." Harry had paused as he tried to remember when he had written to her aunt when the memory of what he wrote and the letter from the Flamels came crashing into his mind.

"I… er… that is… I need to go." That was all Harry managed to get out before he bolted away like a deer. Every single one of his friends chased after him, knowing that this would be something that they would regret if they missed it. Susan however took the moment to read the rest of her aunt's letter before blushing at what her aunt had written.

"Oh Harry." She sighed in contentment, taking solace in knowing that he felt the same way she did.

"Why must you make things difficult?" She stood up from the table and waved the professors off who were looking worried at the fact that a student bolted and a herd followed him. She slowly walked out of the Hall as if she was a predator and was on the hunt. Which was remarkably accurate considering the way Harry had bolted.

She considered the different ways to track him down before simply deciding to follow the chaos that seemed to follow Harry around like a puppy. She heard falling suits of armor coming from the main staircase and made her way through. The sight of what lay before her caused her to stare in bafflement. Tapestries had fallen to the floor, their occupants screaming in outrage and pieces of armor scattered all over the hallway.

"How on earth did you manage to cause all this mess?" Her voice was like a barb and was sufficient enough to chastise everyone present, even Harry who was currently situated in a pod-like weaving that was strong enough to hold his weight, with strands connecting to every staircase railing on this floor landing and the next.

Harry looked over to her with wide eyes and had a gentle blush on his face that caused Daphne to coo over the sight before coughing and schooling her face when everyone stared at her.

"Umm hi?" The gentle murmur of Harry's voice brought the attention back to the soap opera of Susan and Harry but neither noticed as they were in their own world. So engrossed in the sight of each other that they didn't notice the professors or the rest of the school arriving either. The Council and Guard let the professors through but kept the rest of the students from interrupting as this was blackmail material worthy for years to come.

"Is it alright if I come up? It won't break and have you plummet down three flights of stairs will it?"

"It'll be fine." Harry reassured her. "They're infused with my magic right now and nigh on unbreakable. I suppose someone could if they tried hard enough but they would have to have magic stronger than mine so probably only the professors could at the moment."

She had just set her foot on one of the woollen ropes before Harry stopped her.

"Just a sec." he called out, motioning for her to get back onto the landing. What happened next took the breath of a lot of the older students as well as the professors' away. Closing his eyes gently in concentration he sent another wave of magic into the wool to strengthen his control over it before gently detaching ropes one by one and reapplying them somewhere else so that rather than being in the empty space between two floors, he was on a more stable web situated horizontally.

It was a wonderful sight as the different colored wool glowed with their appropriate color before weaving themselves back into a spiderweb pattern. He then sent a bolt of cloth that changed its dimensions until it made a path from Harry to Susan.

He smiled gently and pulled out two spools of silk that he sent down the path, acting as handrails and reassuring Susan that he wouldn't let her fall. Inviting her to sit next to him in his pod he waved his hand and a heat wave appeared around them and muffled their voices.

No one outside of the web could hear what they were saying but many of the purebloods could guess based the actions they took. The solemn way Susan talked and showed her letter. The way Harry had a gentle and hesitant smile on his face as he reached for her hand. The beaming grin on her face after he kissed her hand. The way she practically tackled him in joy.

When the drama had reached the tackle many girls gave dramatized wails while a few of the more dedicated (crazy) girls actually started wailing in despair. Fake tears of pride were wiped by the males and coins changed hands as the betting pool that had started when Harry had accidentally grabbed Susan's breasts, which were actual grounds for contracts to be written, came to a conclusion. To many who knew them it was inevitable but the only variable they had to calculate was when it would happen.

There was much debate over the specifics as just because they are entering a contract has no meaning on when they actually enter the contract. This could just be a period where they are testing the waters.

While they were debating the specifics of the Harry-Susan betting pool, the privacy wards dropped and the end of the pair's conversation could be heard by everyone.

"-The talk via a letter. I was so scarred by what I had read that I couldn't look at any girl in the eye for days." Mentally, Susan and many of the girls in the Guard and Council cursed whoever it was that sent him the Talk in a letter and destroying part Harry's innocence. Nicholas Flamel, who wrote the letter at Perenelle's insistence, had a massive sneezing fit that forced his wife to send him to bed.

Harry gently raised the web until it was back to its original height before weaving the ropes into a staircase with the cloth acting as a carpet so that their steps didn't sink into air. He escorted Susan back onto solid ground before snapping his fingers and silently willing for the wool and cloth to reroll itself and with a wave of his hand brought the basket back to him.

It didn't take him long to finish packing and when he did, Susan took his hand and led him to their next class, the pair still oblivious to everyone who was watching them.

* * *

It eventually became time for the Halloween feast that Harry had displayed a not so keen interest in attending. He had managed to charm Susan into having dinner with him in the kitchens and ran the idea by Professor Sprout to ensure that they wouldn't be out of bounds during it which had been approved almost immediately when he lowered his head so that we was staring through his fringe with wide eyes. She caved soon after.

So when everyone started to move towards the Great Hall, it was a happy pair of 2nd years who made their way down to the kitchens and sat a faraway table in the corner. It seemed like the house elves knew the latest gossip as there was a small vases of roses with petals as dark as Susan's hair, while the candles were blazing a gentle emerald green that matched Harry's eyes.

As the house elves were about to bring them their food, Harry insisted that they make sure that the feast was ready first since that seemed like the larger job. The elf in charge of serving them widened his eyes and nodded and hurried back to the rest of the elf contingent where they were to send the food up at the Headmaster's signal.

"So was there any particular reason as to why you didn't want to eat at the feast with everyone else?" Susan was clearly hesitant about asking this question but felt that she needed him to answer for his own peace of mind. "Not that I don't enjoy your company or anything. I'm quite fond of it and don't intend to let it go any time soon." She light-heartedly joked, hoping to lessen the impact of her words.

"It's fine to ask. It's not a huge deal, not as much as last year anyway. I've made some good progress with my relatives so at least they aren't beating me anymore." Harry paused at the information that he had never told anyone and casually blurted out before forcing himself to relax. It was Susan. She's been by his side for over a year and he had even asked her aunt about courting her, in accordance with what he hoped had been correct customs otherwise he looked quite the fool.

"It's just sometimes I wish they were still here. Even now I wonder what it's like to receive a good morning every day or a kiss to the forehead at night."

She saw his struggle and gently muttered "Oh Harry" under her breath before taking his hand and rubbing circles in it with her thumb. "I understand completely. I feel the same way sometimes when Auntie is at work. You can't help but wonder what it would be like if it had been someone else that had lost their parents rather than us."

"What about Hannah and her family? You all seem rather close."

"We've practically grown up together. They're like the cousin, aunt and uncle Auntie would have been if my parents were alive and she wasn't so focused on her career." The last bit was said jokingly, as it was clear that Susan didn't wish for her aunt to change in any way. "She's my inspiration."

"So you want to be an auror when you grow up then?" Harry was inquisitive about what she wanted to do after Hogwarts which was in a decent 5 years.

"I'm not entirely sure if I want to be an auror. I wouldn't mind being a prosecutor or healer for the auror corps though. Something to help give back to the people who risk their lives to keep us safe." Her eyes blazed as she talked about her dreams and Harry was drawn to her even more.

"I want to be able to do something that involves fabric or clothing materials. It doesn't matter what it is. It could be a fashion designer, tapestry weaver or a magical light armorer. Just as long as I can feel the needles in my fingers, smell the scent of leather and cloth in the air and listen to the rhythm of the wool spinning in my ears." His eyes glazed over slightly as he reveled in the feel and hum of his magic. His control slipped for a moment and Susan and some of the surrounding elves listened to the tune of his magic and basked in what he felt all the time.

"Oh Merlin Harry! Is that what your magic sounds and feels like all the time? That's amazing. No wonder you can work wonders with it. It's literally in your magic." Harry merely grinned at her praise.

"I looked it up in the library. Long ago before there were wands or even staffs, wizards and witches had their magic more aligned to a more academic or ambient leaning. Academic mages slowly built up their reserves from what would be described as accidental magic in our time, while ambient mages draw their powers from whatever their magic aligns them to. In my case it's fabrics and working them into clothing and weavings."

"They still pop up now and then. I think Snape might be an ambient cooking mage with a heavy focus on potions but don't tell him I said that. I have no way to prove it and would rather not have him on my case by accusing him of being a wonderful chef." Susan sniggered at the image of Snape in a frilly white apron and nearly lost herself to laughter before she could manage to tell Harry what she found so funny.

"I think there might be an ambient seer in the new batch of Ravenclaws as well. I've seen her with a faraway look sometimes and it fits with some of my research about the signs of ambient mages. Will you help me check if she can?"

"Look at you. Prince, Protector and now Patron. By the time you finish Hogwarts they're going to run out of words starting with P to add to your title." She teased, a beaming smile that told him how proud she was of him cutting through any hurt that could have been implied.

It was during a wonderful dessert of treacle tart and strawberry cheesecake that Harry passed on the warning that Dobby had given him during the holidays when he wasn't receiving mail but mentioned that he hadn't seen anything yet that could have been linked to the danger.

"Not even a hint? Are you sure that the elf was serious and not playing a joke?"

"I think I can tell when a crazy house elf is serious or not Sue." He teased back, a smile on his face. He rather enjoyed watching her tuck a single lock of hair behind her ear that kept escaping all through the meal. "Anyway it's getting late, we should head back to the Common Room and find out how the feast went."

Susan nodded in agreement and shoved the remaining half of her cheesecake into her mouth like a squirrel and smiled cutely at Harry with bulging cheeks. He just snorted at the sight, pressed his lips lightly against one of the bulging cheeks and pulled her along by the hand, looking back now and then to make sure she didn't choke on the cake.

She had a rather prominent blush that circled around the bulges as she slowly made her way through small chunks of cake, taking care to chew and swallow properly before she tripped and choked. When she had finally finished her last mouthful she joked about tripping and injuring herself via cheesecake.

When they entered the Common Room, they made their way to the couch in front of the fire and curled up together, sated by the full course meal and the warmth of the fire. It was an hour later when Harry woke up from the impromptu nap to the sound of the rest of Hufflepuff making its way into the Common Room in a panic.

"Mr Potter! Ms Bones! I'm so glad you're alright. Where were you an hour and a half ago?" Susan jerked upright from the shouting and smacked Harry in the chin, sending them both onto the couch again groaning in pain, Susan clutching the top of her head while Harry held his chin.

"In the kitchens with the house elves ma'am. Why? Did something happen?" Harry answered, rubbing his chin to get rid of some of the pain

"A message was written on the wall. It said that 'the Chamber of Secrets has been opened! Enemies of the Heir Beware!' Poor Mrs Norris. I've never seen Filch so distressed. The head master had summoned everyone back to the Great Hall while they checked to see if they could find what had petrified the cat."

" #$%."

"Language Mr Potter!"

"Sorry professor." Turning to Susan with a raised eyebrow.

"Think this could be the danger that Dobby warned us about." Susan's reply was so colourful that Harry had to take note of some of them and also had the added effect of causing Professor Sprout to blush at the insinuations.

"Life can't be simple with you at Hogwarts now can it Mr Potter?" Susan asked exasperated, as Hannah approached for gossip and reassurances that they were both fine.

"You know me. I aim to make life interesting no matter where I am." Harry shot back with a cheeky grin that made his smile more prominent with his eyes gently glowing. "Give me 7 months, I'll solve the issue no problem."

"We'll solve it Harry. I'm not letting all of my efforts in chasing you go to waste just because I wanted to play damsel in distress. No, we'll grab the Council and yes this includes Daphne, Tracey and Padma, stop putting off making more of these eye-gouging armbands, you know you want to, and we'll gather all the clues and solve it together your highness for we are Your Council." Susan ended the impromptu speech with a passionate salute and a gentle kiss to the cheek before she scampered off to bed leaving Harry gaping at her back on the couch spellbound at the sight.


	12. Chapter 12

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

 **I would like to apologize for the offence that the two chapters that I have since removed has caused. I had read stories that had a Lockhart similar to that which I had written so I figured that it would be ok. Please note that I am not trying to justify my actions but had not realized that what I had written had been that bad. I'd like to thank those who gave me more critical reviews as I had not realized that what I had written had conflicting plot lines and to the person who called me a 'sick perverted f #k' I would like to thank you as I had not realized that I had crossed the line with what I wrote and it really drove the point home. I will do my best to ensure that I do not cross the line again but I would appreciate more critical reviews so that I can understand what I have and have not done wrong. Once again I apologize for the offence I have caused and will do my best to ensure that I do not do it again.**

* * *

Year 2 Part 4

Life at Hogwarts had become increasingly difficult for Harry. He had recently developed the ability to sense the aura of the people around him through the bodily reactions that affected their clothes and after the first attack the general mood of the castle had turned from a vibrant happy to a somber wariness with a healthy tinge of fear.

Students were walking around in groups and the Headmaster had taken the initiative to get the teachers, ghosts and portraits to watch over the students as they made their way from class to class. The constant supervision had students on edge and more prone to confrontations, especially between Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Harry still had not managed to control his ability of sensing auras and so the ambiance of the castle was starting to affect Harry's health. The black market run by the students were only making matters worse. The greed and desperation from sellers and buyers was causing Harry to feel nauseous. He also felt something incredibly dark but had not managed to find out what it was or who was carrying it thanks to all the negative energy that everyone was releasing.

This in turn had started to affect his grades. The loss of rest coupled with the negative energy had resulted in him being hospitalized from stress. His friends had taken to keeping an eye on him to make sure that he got enough food and sleep and the constant hovering had caused his temper to snap one day in the Great Hall for lunch.

"Look! I'm already stressed enough as it is from the negative energy and constantly checking on me doesn't help. I'd appreciate it if you make sure that I'm not overdoing it but constantly watching me isn't going to make me any better."

He had felt bad for snapping and confessed as much to Susan but she had reassured him that they understood and would back off.

"We're just worried about you." He tried to protest but she cut him off.

"We understand that we've been watching you too much so don't worry about us being angry. You had every right to snap at us and we'll make sure to cut back but please take care of your health. This year is bad enough without you fainting on us as well."

He had felt relieved that there were no hard feelings and was feeling cheerful enough that he bribed the Weasley twins to start a rumor that Lockhart was a liar and sat back to watch the sparks fly.

The twins had taken on the challenge with gusto and soon there were comedic arguments all around the castle as most of the boys and some of the more cynical girls had agreed with the rumor while the fangirls were vehement in defending the local, proven eye candy.

Harry had figured out the trick to keeping the ambiance from affecting him by wearing a charm that radiated a small field of his personal magic that countered the effects from the populace. The downside of it was that he used up more energy every day, but at least he had stopped feeling nauseous and after the first time he collapsed it hadn't happened again.

Harry's research had turned to history and myth, trying to find any legends about the Chamber of Secrets but his research hadn't revealed anything. The only thing he had discovered was that Salazaar Slytherin was a Parselmouth and upon discussing his discovery with his Council and Guard, he found that it had a negative stigma in Britain.

"So you're saying that you're a parselmouth?" Neville asked once Harry had brought up the fact that he could speak to snakes.

"It was one time at the zoo and I thought that it was just another form of unique magic. I mean, I already have one form of uniqueness so why not another? It's not like everyone is going to accuse me of being the Heir of Slytherin if it gets out right?" Harry had become slightly desperate at the end of his short speech when no one answered or reassured him.

"You know that we believe that you wouldn't set the basilisk on the students but would being the actual Heir of Slytherin be so bad. The house hasn't always been so dark and it's only until You-Know-Who rose to power that people labelled Slytherin House as evil." Daphne began slowly, unsure how Harry would take the new direction of conversation.

"With the popularity you currently have at Hogwarts you could be just the thing to bring the house back into the neutral light that it had begun with. It's pretty much only a quarter of the house that believes in pure-blood supremacy and it's simply the idea of being cunning and ambitious that no one in Slytherin has been able to shine a good light on the house." She had begun timid and had slowly worked herself into a passionate speech when Harry showed that he wasn't against the idea.

Harry got the feeling that these issues had been a long-standing ideal in the house that no one had been able to voice just yet. He promised that he would think about it but wouldn't actively announce that he was a parselmouth. Daphne was satisfied with his decision and hadn't brought the idea up since he had promised to muse over it.

* * *

It was near the end of November when things took a turn for the worst. Lockhart had announced that he would be hosting a dueling club and while the fangirls took the announcement with exuberance while everyone else was rather skeptical. The rumor about Lockhart being a fake hadn't helped with the popularity of the idea.

Harry and his friends met up in the Entrance Hall 15 minutes before the event began and entered rather warily, still unsure about the whole idea. Harry, Susan, Neville and Daphne were unsure anyway. The other girls were practically radiating adoration. They mentally braced themselves and moved over to some of the Guard who were sharing their hesitation.

The Great Hall's tables had been moved against the walls and standing in the middle was a large dueler's platform that currently held Professors Lockhart and Snape. Many of the students sighed in relief at the sight of at least one capable professor and were slightly disappointed that world famous dueler, Filius Flitwick was not participating.

"Welcome everyone to the first session of the Dueling Club. I, winner of the Witch Weekly Most Charming Smile award for 5 years running, Gilderoy Lockhart will be teaching you how to protect yourself in this time of need."

Lockhart flounced around the stage, showing off his unnaturally white teeth to the crowd as he played up the adoration of the female fans.

"I and my assistant, the gracious Professor Snape, have agreed to teach you the basics of how to duel. Don't worry though, you'll have your potions professor in one piece when I'm through with him." He waited for the crowd to cheer, which were naturally only the fangirls, while many of the males had sneers on their faces.

"The first spell that we will be teaching you is the disarming spell. The incantation is 'Expelliamus'. Please practice amongst yourselves for a few minutes before we get some volunteers up."

Lockhart looked towards Snape for a moment for support but faltered slightly when all he received was a sneer. He composed himself and began walking along the platform, checking on the students before asking for volunteers. He began looking around for someone, a specific someone if the way he was looking told anything.

"Ah, Harry. There you are. Come on up why don't you." Harry groaned out loud as he was singled out once again. It had become more and more frequent the more Harry refused and it was starting to get on his nerves. He moved rather slowly towards the platform before Hermione and Hannah sent him rather vicious glares that told him to get a move on. It was saying something when two 12 year old girls were more intimidating than a grown man.

"Excellent, excellent. It seems that you'll be going against Mr Malfoy. Now don't panic and just copy what I do exactly." Which wasn't much considering that he just wiggled his wand in a complicated manner before dropping it.

"Exactly which part am I supposed to be copying, the wiggle or the dropping?" Harry replied, keeping the sneer from his voice. In his head, however, he was contemplating how to mimic the disarming charm since he wasn't entirely confident that he could still use wand magic since he hadn't bothered to get a replacement wand.

"That's the spirit Harry. Now don't forget. Do what I did." Lockhart had conveniently glossed over the fact that he hadn't answered his question, cementing the fact that he was incompetent in Harry's mind, not even being able to give advice on something as simple as the disarming charm.

"Now on 3! 3! 2! 1! BEGIN!" Lockhart called out before leaping away.

Harry watched as Malfoy most assuredly did not cast the disarming charm, instead throwing sting hexes and other low powered disabling spells available to a second year. Sidestepping all of the badly aimed spells, Harry sent a thread of magic to connect itself to his wrist before pulling sharply to the side, forcing his grip to break and sending his wand flying away.

"Very well done Harry. You didn't even need to draw your wand! Of course it was thanks to my advice that you were able to. Now how about another round."

Malfoy looked rather angry at being made a fool and had a dark look as he received his wand from Professor Snape. When Lockhart called out to begin again he had a malicious grin on his face and called out his next spell.

"SERPENSORTIA!"

Out came a king cobra that looked decidedly unhappy about being summoned to some unknown place. With venom dripping from its fangs, it slithered around looking for someone to take its annoyance out on.

"Calm down Potter. I'll deal with this." Snape called out, striding forward to banish it back to where it was summoned from.

"Nonsense. I'll take care of it." Called out Lockhart brandishing his wand in the snake's direction, merely causing it for fly up towards the ceiling before landing with a thump and looking decidedly unhappy.

Spreading its hood the snake spat out explicit language that had Harry shocked as he wasn't sure if some of those things were possible, for snake or human.

" _Calm down. The man is incompetent but there is no need for such language._ "

" _A Speaker? Why was I summoned speaker? I must go back and protect my eggs._ "

" _Come here and I'll take you to the man who is capable of sending you back._ "

Harry bent down and offered his arm to the cobra who gently curled itself on his arm. Walking down the platform to Professor Snape, he reassured the cobra that this was the man who was capable and let it slither down to the floor to await banishment much to the shock of everyone who was not privy to his secrets.

" _It was a pleasure to meet you Speaker! It is not every day that a serpent meets a Speaker!_ "

" _Your welcome. It was a pleasure meeting you as well._ "

With a nod to Professor Snape, the snake soon vanished. Harry looked around at the silent hall and cursed himself for forgetting the conversation that they had about being a parselmouth only hours before.

"Yep. I'm a parselmouth. I honestly had no clue that it was such big deal so don't get paranoid on me now."

The crowd merely laughed uncertainly and watched with suspicious stares as Harry moved back down the platform and back to the safety of his friends who closed ranks on him to block out some of the stairs before escorting him out.

Once the group had exited the hall, most of the council face-palmed that Harry felt made a rather nice collective sound. He hadn't verbalized the thought as he hadn't wanted to be vocally eviscerated with another lecture about appropriate comments. The first one had been bad enough when he had absentmindedly insulted Lockhart's hair, comparing it to a blonde otter. The fangirls in particular had taken quite a bit of offence at that. It had taken him pointing randomly in a direction and calling out Professor Lockhart before he could escape.

"It's not like I planned to reveal myself, not even an hour after our conversation." Harry protested to the deadpanned faces of his Council. "She was a nesting mother worried about her eggs! What was I supposed to do! Think of the snake children!" The comment had no effect on the stares and Harry gave it up as a lost cause.

"There, there Harry." Susan cooed. "It's not your fault you don't think about things before doing them."

"Than- HEY!" Harry pouted at the backhanded insult that she had plied him with before sulking even as the group split up to go back to their common rooms.

Harry went into his room, still pouting to catch up on the homework that he had missed out on when he collapsed to ensure that there were no holes in his knowledge before settling down to start braiding some more silk. He had realized that silk was much better than the paper thin streamers that he had been using as it tended to wear out much faster the more magic he put in to it. He hoped that he could find out more information about the Chamber so that he could drop his barriers quicker as it had become rather annoying and uncomfortable to have a layer of magic surrounding him at all times.


	13. Chapter 13

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Year 2 Part 5

There were both good and bad things about being able to control the ability to sense the aura of the people around him. On the positive side, he never had to worry about running into anyone and with a slight warning could dodge anything sent to him. The second went hand in hand with the unfortunate intensity that other students were showing to him despite trying to reassure them that he was not, in fact, the Heir of Slytherin.

Idiot's 1 and 2 seemed to be at the forefront of this campaign. Daphne and Hermione both confirmed that they were spreading stories and nasty rumors about how he was trying to take over Hogwarts with some of the more extreme upper years and they advised him to start wearing more protection because it seemed like they were planning to escalate things.

Harry just sighed and accepted that he would need to avoid being alone for now. He simply sat there, at the table in the library that they had commandeered as he watched a spider flee in terror. Confused at why the spider was running away he looked around to see if there was a predator around but frowned when there was nothing there.

He excused himself for the day, not particularly worried about the upcoming exams as he had kept up to date on his schoolwork and didn't feel like studying at the moment. Swinging up the cloak onto his shoulders he walked away, following the spider out into the hallway. He followed it down the corridor before it slipped through a crack in the window. Harry looked out the window and frowned when he noticed that it lead to the Forbidden Forest.

He sighed to himself as it seemed like he would have to venture into the forest to get answers. He left a note saying he wanted home time to himself to wander and that he would be back by class tomorrow that he left nailed to Hannah's door as he figured she would be less likely to mentally maim him with lectures.

He changed into a set of dragon leather clothing, Hungarian Horntail, dyed as black as possible and charmed with as many stealth runes as he could think of. Harry also equipped 3 wheels of needles on one arm and 3 wheels of pins on the other. Now suitable armed, he put his cloak on and activated its stealth charms as well, making him nigh on invisible from all the layers of magic, slung his basket over his shoulder and marched out the Common Room, chin up and back straight.

Harry had started walking down the path to the forest that went past when he had a sudden stroke of inspiration and headed towards Hagrid's hut since he still had the lights on. Standing nervously, unsure about whether or not Hagrid would be accepting of him being down, with all the attacks going on at the moment.

He heard movement from within and deactivated his stealth charms so that Hagrid would notice him.

"Good evening Hagrid. Do you mind if I come in for a moment?"

"Blimey Harry. What are you doing down here at this time of night?" Hagrid was quite shocked at his arrival and seemed rather confused at the moment.

"I couldn't sleep and had some questions for you about some of the animals I've seen behaving oddly around the castle." Harry asked urgently, not wanting anyone to see his silhouette from the castle.

"Questions you say? Come on in then. Best get what you need so you can go back faster."

Harry slipped into the cabin and sent out a web in a 100 meter radius. It was a strain of his magic but he had figured that it was better to use a bit now in not getting caught rather than saving it all and being sent back to the castle. Harry moved to sit down beside the bed, against the wall, so that he could remain still and simply activate his stealth charms to remain hidden.

"I've seen some of the spiders moving away from the castle and wondered if you knew anything about it?"

"Spiders aye? Not much scares spiders besides their natural predators. Do you know how they were moving?"

"They looked like they were fleeing. This was indoors so there wasn't much that could catch them and it was what sparked my interest."

"Not much can scare spiders like that except the basilisk. Of course, what are the odds of a basilisk being in the school huh Harry?" Hagrid laughed off the idea as ludicrous, the idea that a basilisk being at the school, undetected for years being laughable indeed.

Harry, however, froze in shock at the idea. He suddenly felt sick that no one had died yet. Lavender Brown and Penelope Clearwater had been found petrified earlier that day, which was the reason why they were studying, to take their minds off the idea that another attack had happened. Rumors were flying that Brown had been checking her reflection in the mirror and had it at just the right angle for both girls to be petrified.

His thoughts then turned back to the other attacks. Mrs Norris, the floor was flooded. Justin and Sir Nicholas, he figured the ghost had taken the attack full on and had diluted the effect for Justin so that both were petrified. Now Brown and Clearwater from a mirror. It all made horrifying sense and was feeling rather nauseous when he felt his web trip.

He hastily activated his charms and tried to slow his breathing as he felt 3 men approaching, one with glee and another with false confidence.

Hagrid looked around rather shocked that Harry had vanished and was about to ask when he heard someone knocking at his door. Rather glad he couldn't find Harry anymore, he got up and went to open the door. He seemed to pale slightly at the sight of the three men and when they entered Harry could see why.

"Mr Malfoy, Mr Fudge, Headmaster." Hagrid greeted them with a nod of his head to each man. "What can I do for you?"

"The board of governors has been meeting lately to discuss the attacks and have reached the conclusion that since you were caught at the scene of the crime 50 years ago that you are once more guilty of the crime and had simply been biding your time. The minister has arrived with us in support of our decision. It is out hope that you come quietly and without fuss." Lucius said all of this without missing a beat, looking quite at ease and even slightly gleeful about having one upped Dumbledore.

"Do not worry Hagrid. I'm sure that this is all an honest mistake and they'll have you out of there as soon as possible." Dumbledore interjected calmly, his eyes twinkling like stars. He too seemed rather calm that one of his supporters was being dragged to Azkaban.

Harry, of course, had no idea what was happening. His mind was swimming with the idea that Hagrid had opened the chamber 50 years ago but figured that it was ludicrous since he was simply too kindhearted to do that sort of thing. Why Dumbledore was letting him be sent away was a mystery however.

"Do not be so hasty Dumbledore. If we hear about another attack then you might just be next." Lucius seemed quite happy at the thought so Harry guessed that he must not have heard about the attacks that happened earlier that day, or was bluffing and biding his time.

"Er, Right then… If anyone wants answers, all they have to do is follow the spiders." Hagrid said rather loudly as he walked out the door.

Harry remained where he was sitting, waiting for the men to leave. 'Follow the spiders. Ergh, I'm going to regret this in the morning.' After he felt the men leave his web, he got up and sidled out the back door, heading once more to the forest.

He detached the web from its anchor around Hagrid's hut and attached it to himself, filling the space left over from the house and extending the web to 125 meters. Pulling the hood over his head so that the hood covered his eyes, he channeled magic into his eyes and unraveled a platform worth of magic.

The walk into the forest was intimidating and Harry knew that if he didn't need the answers he would not be here. The presence was suffocating. Leaves and branches rustled in the wind, as if things were watching him while the dark did not help his nerves.

In a moment of foresight, he shortened his web back to its initial 100 meter radius before projecting 25 meters upwards and when he registered what his web was telling him he blanched. Giant arachnids were climbing through the trees, watching him for a moment of weakness.

Cursing himself, he unraveled another platform and infused everything he was wearing with the power, charming it for protection and sturdiness. He then sealed his hood to his collar, shirt to pants and pants to socks, leaving only his face as the only available opening. He only hoped that his magic was strong enough to withstand the spider bites.

He continued walking down a path that steadily became less tree and more web. Harry tried sending out a tendril of magic to see if he could infuse it with his magic and was relieved that he could manipulate it somewhat. He opted to go for a quantity over quality strategy and sent another 2 platforms worth of magic into the webs near the path, leaving him at 3/5 capacity.

When he reached what seemed to be a large pit with a path winding down the edge, with caves set along the path, into the wall he debated going down there or remaining up here, not in a web of death.

"I SEEK AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF THE SPIDERS!"

Harry shouted from the top of the pit, deeming it the safer option. He moved so that his back was against a large tree and waited. Clicking of the spiders pincers came from all around him, as if debating his request when Harry felt the largest presence he had ever sensed coming from a giant hole at the bottom of the valley. He was secretly glad he hadn't decided to walk down there alone.

"My name is Aragog. What can I do for you fleshling?" The spider's voice was deep and menacing. Harry figured it was simply the clicking that unnerved him.

"Hagrid has been arrested for a crime that had taken place 50 years ago. As he was being taken away he said to follow the spiders if I wanted answers. So here I am." Harry was glad that his voice wasn't shaking. He could tell that if he showed fear then the spiders would descend on him in an instant.

"50 years ago I was but a hatchling. Accused of the death of a young girl but impossible for me to commit. Hagrid was expelled but I managed to escape into the forest, where I have remained. He managed to find me a female and you can see the result of that. Do you have your answers now fleshling?"

"One more, Aragog. Why are the spiders fleeing the castle?"

"We can sense the presence of our mortal enemy. Now that we have answered your questions, I'm afraid I cannot allow you to leave. It is not often that meat willingly walks into our nest. Goodbye, acquaintance of Hagrid!" Harry had been tensing through Aragog's final sentences and dove out of the way when he heard that final click of the pincers that he figured was the word to attack.

Praying to whatever gods looked over magic, he dove once more to the side, avoiding a lunge from an over enthusiastic spider and pulled out a needle that he sent flying towards the one that had just tried to eat him. As it expanded once it left a 2 meter radius, all eyes turned to watch its path. Even as the spiders turned to watch the speardle fly, Harry wasted no moment sprinting as fast as he could. He heard a shriek of pain and cheered mentally before his actions caught up with him once more.

What he thought next would have his mouth scrubbed with soap if anyone heard him say it out loud. He ran as long and as hard as he could and he started to notice the webs filled with his magic. Feeling 3 spiders descend on him he threw up two speardles up before sending a small ball of tightly woven red wool inside a vial of red dye before igniting the wool.

The smell of charred spider wafted through the air and Harry was glad that his experiment with the dyes worked as well as it had. Using the dye as a reagent for the elemental effects with the wool as a catalyst was proving to be more than worthwhile, especially if he could partially control the path it takes.

Harry kept running until he saw a glow ahead. Flooding with relief, he assumed that he had made it to the edge of the forest and into freedom but instead he had entered a clearing full of luminous mushrooms and fireflies.

He ran until he reached the rock wall, and noticing that it really was solid rock, Harry relaxed slightly. The wall was more like a semi-cave, which was perfect for what he needed. Taking a deep breath, he prepared for a fight for his life. He dropped his basket and kicked it open, taking solace in its presence and its well of his own magic that was used as both a storage and additional tools he could use.

With pins in one hand and needles in another, he started throwing. As each tool extended he added a thread to each thin pole of metal, using the elemental effects as the initial impact before each pin acted as an added beacon for Harry's unique mage sight, while the needles created his own web that acted as both tripwires and was capable of slicing the thin legs of the spiders off.

What came next was a battle of attrition. It was a question of who would run out of what first, would the spiders give up first and retreat or would Harry run out and be used as the spider's next meal. That was not a future he wanted to think about so it drove him to using any and all means that he could think of.

On and on he threw, spearing spiders and throwing his pins and vials, devastating the spiders ranks with the elements. Soon there were bodies of spiders littering the floor, some burned, some frozen and some twitching and those were merely those that were still alive. Dozens more lay on the ground, speared by Harry's good aim, which was trained to aim for very small spots thanks to his embroidery.

Harry was running low on all of his materials that he had used in the battle with the spiders, when he heard a faint rumbling in the background. He took a moment to raise a wall of red and yellow wool and take a breather as the wool would burn and shock any spiders that tried to get too close. He was down to his last half wheel of needles and was down to a quarter of pins. Making a mental note to resupply if, no when he survived, he realized that the rumbling was getting closer.

Mentally focusing once more, he sent his wall flying forward, snaring a few more spiders when a blue Ford Anglia stopped in front of his cave and opened a door. Not looking a gift horse in the mouth, he grabbed his basket and jumped in, reabsorbing all the magic from his web and materials as the car sped away leaving nothing but giant needles, pins and patches of wool, silk and linen lying on the floor.

He took inventory of his magic and grimaced at the fact that he was almost down to 2 platforms. He pat the car on the dashboard thanking it as he realized that he wouldn't have survived that last wave if it hadn't arrived. The car gave a rumbling purr as it made its way through the trees back to the relative safety of Hogwarts.

As the car pulled up near the gates with its engine running near silently, Harry pulled out the rest of his silk and gave the car's seats some red and gold trimming as a thank you. Climbing out and grabbing his basket, he shut the door and pat the car on the hood before walking up towards the door.

"Good evening Harry Potter." Came a light, eerie voice from the shadow of the doorway. Harry jumped violently and was about to pull out a needle and throw it before realizing that it was the first year he had promised to keep an eye on but never got the chance to.

"Good evening Miss?"

"Lovegood, but you can call me Luna." The reply was made almost absentmindedly.

"Pleasure to meet you Luna, may I ask you why you're down here in just your pajamas?"

"I saw you coming out of the forest. Unfortunately, I do not have magic like you do nor does Professor Snape. We are just talented in the usual magical gifts."

Harry paused and thought about it for a second before nodding. Maybe he really was unique, a mistake in the weaving of magic.

"Good night Luna, I'll come talk to you whenever I have time." He bid her farewell, before repairing and cleaning his cloak and draping it over her shoulders. It wouldn't have the magical warmth or invisibility charms but she seemed capable of making her way around the school without getting caught so it should be fine. He could always make another when he had time and the materials on hand.

He trooped down to the kitchens hallway and into the Hufflepuff common room. The noise in the Common Room shut off as the doorway opened and Harry practically fell in to the room. He was quite a sight. His clothing was ripped and barely hanging by a thread, ever since he had drawn all the magic he had infused into his clothing back into himself to ensure he didn't pass out from using too much magic. Bruises littered his body quite liberally and welts crisscrossed his skin. His hands were blistered and bleeding looked like they could barely move anymore.

He walked slowly towards his room, ignoring the whispers and the attempted interrogation by Susan and Hannah before collapsing onto his bed and blacking out, not noticing the shakes of the girls heads as they and Cedric helped Harry into bed and under the covers, throwing the remains of the dragon leather onto the table as they weren't sure if Harry would reuse them. As they walked out of his room, they each threw him an amusing and worried look, wondering what he had done this time before turning off the lights and shutting the door.


	14. Chapter 14

Harry Potter and the Weaver's Wizardry

Year 2 Part 6

Harry woke up the next morning feeling quite refreshed and in a lot of pain. Now that the adrenaline had worn off Harry could feel each and every bruise, welt and burn that he received the previous night. He slowly rose out of bed and staggered in to the bathroom. The cascade of hot water was working wonders on his body and it was almost an hour later before he climbed back out. He got changed and wrote out an order to Madam Malkin asking for a restock of all of his supplies, most of it being from the non-magical world, hoping he would be able to get it as soon as possible.

As soon as he had this thought he heard a tapping on the window and looking over, noticing his extremely smart owl who always showed up no matter what. Moving over to Hedwig, he smoothed her feathers and scratched her head as she leaned into his ministrations before tying the letter to her leg.

"Fly fast and safe but don't push yourself. If you need to hunt then do so, I won't be angry." Harry informed Hedwig, who hooted in thanks as she took off into the morning.

He moved towards his table to collect his books and equipment he would need for the day when he noticed the scraps of dragon leather left over from last night's escapade. As he examined the pile his thoughts turned to what he could do with it since repairing it was out of the question. He figured he could cut it into strips and weave it into his other clothing as padding, since it had been rather comfy.

Figuring he could leave it for another time, he got dressed in his uniform and made his way to the Great Hall to grab some food. He took 3 steps into the Common Room when he was tackled from behind by Hannah.

"Harry! Where did you go? What did you do? Why didn't you ask for help? Are you ok? Are you still bruised? Oh Merlin I just tackled you while you were still injured." Hannah fired off her questions in rapid fire, not allowing him to respond until he placed a finger on her lip.

"I went into the forest. I asked some spiders some questions. I didn't think anyone would want to join me in asking giant spiders some questions. I'm tired and sore but ultimately fine." He responded just as fast without lifting his finger. He felt her shudder when he mentioned the giant spiders and could hear the silence spread through the Common Room.

"Merlin Potter. How are you still alive?" Cedric asked the question everyone wanted to ask.

"I almost didn't make it. There was some sort of sentient blue car that saved me. No idea why it was there but I outlined its seats with silk as thanks so there's that." He said with a grin and sent a smile towards Susan, who he had noticed had just walked in, but she had a cold expression on her face and brushed past him without so much as a good morning.

He watched her walk out with an uneasy expression on his face. He turned to Cedric when he leaned in to whisper something in his ear.

"I think she's angry." He whispered in Harry's ear, causing Harry to smack him on the back of the head in irritation. Of course being 12 he didn't have that much reach so he had to jump up to do it but the feeling remained the same. Cedric merely pouted and pet Harry on the head, ruffling his hair before wrapping his arm around Harry's shoulder and dragging him out to the Great Hall.

Seeing Susan sitting alone at the table, he made to move towards her when he watched her slowly raised her fork and the moment he took a step towards her, she rather violently stabbed into the bacon platter. It was at that point that Harry deemed it safer to stay away from Susan for a bit in the name of self-preservation.

* * *

The group dynamic remained like that for 2 weeks, Harry had eventually gotten sick of her behaviour and rather irrationally started acting cold towards her, deciding that until she relaxed and attempted to speak to him, he wouldn't speak to her either. Hannah was torn between the two and tried to make peace between them until Harry took her aside and told her that he understood that she needed to be by Susan's side.

While it didn't solve as many problems as it could have, things were certainly easier for Hannah. She sent him multiple apologetic looks as she followed Susan whenever she decided to leave in order to avoid him. Meals were taken further away, the study group divided between two tables but refused to take sides and she left for her room whenever he entered the common room while she was inside.

It was driving Harry mad, the way she was behaving was not a reasonable reaction to his stunt in the forest, but he had insisted that it wasn't like he wanted to go into the forest in the first place. He only wanted to ask Hagrid some questions but was told to follow the spiders if he wanted answers. He did mention that he found out the beast was a basilisk but her replies to his arguments had become repetitive and he gave up.

He understood that she was worried about him and that she feared that if he died in the forest no one would be able to find him, but it still hurt that she had moved away from him after being one of his first and closest friends and having confided in her. The two weeks that they had spent apart had caused him to become slightly more distant, he still spent time with the rest of his friends but refused to confide in anyone about anything important.

* * *

Harry had taken to walking around the corridors with the invisibility cloak on since he hadn't had time to make himself a new cloak. He considered it a blessing that he still had his dragonhide boots charmed for silencing his footsteps. He was currently on the first floor avoiding the Great Hall as he hadn't felt like eating when a loud wail tore through the hallway.

He moved down the staircase to see what all the fuss was about when he heard Dumbledore shout, which was odd since he never shouted.

"SILENCE! PROFESSORS WILL CONDUCT A HEAD COUNT. EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE IF YOU ALL REMAIN CALM AND SEATED."

Harry was confused as to what had happened to result in a headcount and moved to enter the Great Hall when he was intercepted by a hand grabbing his shoulder.

"Potter!" Harry turned around to see that it was the youngest male Weasley that had grabbed him. He raised an eyebrow at the forceful tone and merely stared at Weasley, waiting for him to speak. He could see him arguing with himself before taking a forceful gulp.

"Harry. I need your help." He looked quite tense, but Harry supposed that it was from having swallowed his pride and actually asking for help.

"What can I help you with Ronald?" He figured that if Ronald could use his name then he could do the same.

"It hurts to ask for your help but I have no other choice. My sister is missing, and there's a creepy message on the wall on the first floor saying that 'her skeleton will be in the chamber forever.' I think she was taken…" Ronald looked quite pale after saying that, his fear for his sister splashed all over his face.

"Really?" Harry was genuinely shocked that this had happened. There hadn't been any sort of idea that a student would be kidnapped. "I need to see this message before we do anything."

The pair rushed up the stairs to the first floor where there was water everywhere once more. He was quite confused as to why the hallway would be flooded when he paused and stared at the message.

'Her skeleton will lie in the chamber forever.' It was written just underneath the first message and looked to be written in the same sort of liquid.

"Well that's ominous." He muttered. Harry turned to Ronald and asked him straight out.

"Do you have a plan or are we just winging it? Also, why didn't you go to a professor?" He was rather curious about the latter question. He was after all, just a second year student and nowhere near as deadly as the professors.

"They wouldn't believe me. After all the trouble I've gotten into this year I doubt they would listen to anything I say." Ronald sounded rather bitter at that, the one time he needed help, he doubted anyone would listen to him. Harry figured it was why he managed to swallow his pride and ask him of all people for help.

"Right then. Let's find a professor and try to save your sister. I have an idea where the chamber is but I'd rather have an adult with us before we do anything."

Harry sent out a pulse to try to find any professors available but most of them were in the Great Hall. The only one available was Lockhart who seemed to be in his office.

"Looks like Lockhart's the only one available. Hopefully he knows something besides how to look good." He had just finished muttering the last part of his sentence but by then he was already being dragged by Ron towards Lockhart's office.

They reached the office in under a minute and Ron barged in, not paying attention that a closed door usually meant privacy. It looked like privacy was indeed intended as when Harry reached the door and peered in, what looked back were covered portraits and half-filled trunks.

"You're leaving? What about my sister?" Ron blurted out. He simply couldn't believe that he was leaving in the middle of such a crisis. "What about your books? You've done loads of stuff like this so why are you running?" Ron's voice was full of suspicion and accusation, while folded arms and a stubborn expression faced Lockhart.

"He's running because he hasn't done anything. If you actually bother to read the books, you'd notice that they have conflicting dates in them at multiple points. My guess is that other people did the things he claimed to but I'm unsure of how he managed to make the claims his." Harry chimed in at this point.

"Now see here boys. It took a lot of work to get the stories out of the people who accomplished these tasks, and if they can't remember what they did, then they can't claim the credit. It's rather genius of me, I'd say."

"Right." Harry drawled. "Well you're coming with us for this. You must have learned something while you were stealing people's stories." With a flick of his fingers, Lockhart's wand flew into Harry's hand and was tucked into the holster that Harry wore by habit. With another flick, Lockhart started being dragged forward by his clothing despite his attempts at anchoring himself with his feet.

The trio walked/dragged themselves to the second floor, girl's bathroom and splashed their way to the circle of sinks. Ron and Lockhart looked around then at Harry, as if asking why they were in a flooded bathroom when there was a girl missing.

"Hello Myrtle. Sorry to be so blunt but we're running short on time. May we ask how you died?" Harry wasn't in the mood to play games so he came out and threw away any tact he had at the moment.

"Oh it was dreadful. I was in here, crying, because Olive Hornby was making fun of my glasses. Then I heard this strange sound, maybe it was another language, but what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. I opened the door to tell him to go away and then, I died." The way she told them made Harry wonder if she was secretly over her death and just remained behind to scare the girls who try to use this bathroom.

"Did you see where the boy was standing?" Harry gestured vaguely around the room.

"He was standing by the sink over there." Myrtle replied, jerking her head in the general direction. "It was odd, because that sink never works."

Harry moved towards the sink in question, sitting there innocently. He tried turning on the tap but frowned when nothing happened. He tried the adjacent sinks and was rewarded with two wet sleeves. He leaned forward for a closer look at the sink and noticed a slight engraving in a vague S shape.

He wondered if it was all connected, and when he thought connected, his thoughts moved to the plumbing around him.

"PIPES!" Harry blurted out. He whirled around and snapped his fingers, dragging Lockhart back towards them where he was trying to sneak out the door while Harry and Myrtle talked.

"The basilisk has been using the plumbing to get around. That must have been the reason the floor was flooded when Mrs Norris was attacked. They weren't sure which sink was the correct one so they turned them all on." Finishing his tangent, Harry leaned towards the sink once more and frowned.

"There must be some way to use the sink." He though out loud, the mystery surrounding the broken sink momentarily taking over. His eyes traced the S shape once more and another idea slithered into his mind. Taking a moment to focus on what he thought might be a snake he whispered to the sink.

" _Open!_ " With a groan, the sink started sinking in to the floor and revealed an stomach dropping hole that went on and on with no end in sight.

"Right then." Harry turned around with a bright, excited sheen in his eyes. "Who wants to go first?"

Lockhart started backing away. "Congratulations boys on solving a mystery not recorded in the history books but this is where I take my leave. Good luck and all that and I'll just be off." The two boys merely gave him unimpressed looks and with a jerk of Harry's hand brought him to the lip of the pipe.

"Now really. There really is no need for this." He protested but with a prod in the back with Ron's wand sent him over and sliding down the tunnel.

"You or me next?" Harry asked as he listened to Lockhart's shrill scream slowly lower in volume as he moved further and further away.

"I'll go. Better make sure he doesn't hurt himself." Ron replied before he too jumped into the hole.

Harry looked over to Myrtle and stated in a rather somber voice.

"If we don't make it out, tell the professors would you?"

"Sure thing Harry. If you do die down there you are more than welcome to share my toilet." She sounded slightly too cheerful for Harry to be reassured.

"Thanks for the offer I guess. Down I go." With that said he jumped down and into the darkness.

The way down was much like an extremely fancy water slide, with plenty of twists and turns. He lost count of how deep they went before he shot out of the tunnel and slamming into the other two who were just picking themselves up, Lockhart a second time.

Harry jumped up and looked around him, before noticing the many rat skeletons lying on the floor.

"Now isn't this a cheerful place." The sarcasm was lost on the other two, who looked rather pale at the skeletons on the floor and the 40 foot snake skin just to their right. Harry was more interested in the runes on the walls and had moved closer to the torch to see them properly.

He had taken a few steps away when he heard the sound of a body falling on to the ground rather roughly. What he turned around to was the sight of Ron on the ground and Lockhart pointing a poorly repaired wand in his direction.

"This is where the fun and games end boys. When I get back to the surface I'll have a gripping tale of how the three of us went on a rescue mission but alas, the lack of experience proved too much for you and I was the only survivor. 'Banishing the Basilisk' I think I'll call it. Not that you'll remember any of this." Lockhart looked like the cat got the canary before he sealed their fates. "'Obliviate'."

Harry couldn't tell what had happened due to the bright flash of light and the loud rumble but when his vision came back he noticed the giant wall of rocks blocking the way out and cutting him off from the other two.

'Lovely.' He thought to himself, before moving to the rock wall and climbing to where he could see a gap.

"Are you alright Ronald?" Harry's call was hesitant as if he didn't want to know if the other two were crushed underneath a pile of stones or not.

"We're fine Harry. Sprained my leg when Lockhart tackled me but I'm a right sight better than he is. Looks like his spell bounced back on him. Don't think he even remembers his own name." Ron's voice was muffled, most likely from the stone.

"Try to clear some space from this gap for when I return with your sister." Harry tried to sound more confident than he felt. With time being of the essence and much of his newly refurbished supplies not being charmed, the chances of them all making it out alive were looking smaller and smaller with each passing minute.

"Harry." Ron's voice was gentle and very different to how he had been for the past two years. It was only now that Harry saw past the greedy boy and saw the boy overshadowed by his 5 older brothers. "I just want to say thanks. Even if we don't leave here alive, I just want you to know I appreciate this. We may never be friends but I don't think I can hate you after this. You didn't have to help but you did anyway. So you better make it back, you hear." His voice grew gruff once more as if to pretend that his moment of weakness hadn't happened.

"Yeah. I will!" He didn't feel like any more needed to be said and it was clear that Ron felt the same.

Pulling out 2 wheels of needles and infusing a platform of magic into each of them, spelling them with piercing charms, he hoped that it would be enough. He also pulled out a strip of black silk and charmed it for one way transparency before wrapping it around his eyes and under his glasses. Pulling the silk tight against his eyes, he quickly wove a light charm and hung it around his neck, making a makeshift lantern as he marched into the depths of the castle.


End file.
